U.S. Senator Tommy Tuberville (R-Auburn) revealed Wednesday he pushed for a 7-0 redistricting map during last week’s special session but settled for the 6-1 Livingston Plan after the calendar ran out.

“One hundred percent,” Tuberville said when asked on “The Jeff Poor Show” whether he would pursue a full 7-0 map as governor.

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled Monday to restore the Livingston Plan after Alabama lawmakers passed contingency legislation during the special session last week. Governor Ivey has since called an August 11 special primary in the four affected congressional districts with no runoff.

Tuberville said he met with House leadership in Montgomery to discuss pushing the redistricting map to a full seven Republican districts. The votes were there. The process was not.

A 7-0 map would have required public hearings that had never been held, and forcing the issue risked blowing up the plan that was vetted and ready to go.

“If we tried that, we would have lost a six and one map,” he said.

Tuberville called the August 11 format a sprint.

“If you get 30% and you got more than everybody else, you’re the winner,” Tuberville said. “There’s no runoff. It’ll be a sprint to the finish.”

Tuberville framed Alabama’s redistricting map fight as part of a broader national battle over fair representation.

“This gerrymander nonsense really started in the Northeast,” Tuberville said. “If you look at the top nine or 10 states in the Northeast, they’re 35, 40% Republican, but they have zero representation in the House. That’s a disgrace. So if they’re going to gerrymander, we’re going to do the same thing.”

Achieving a full 7-0 map would require another special session and a new round of public hearings.

Sawyer Knowles is a capitol reporter for Yellowhammer News. You may contact him at [email protected].