State Sen. Ben Brooks has the highest percentage of black constituents of any Republican in the upper chamber, a fact that has made his district one of more competitive in Alabama.

That seems likely to change, however, when the Legislature adopts a plan to redraw the political map this year. The result could be a much safer Republican seat.

The rewrite is required by law after each Census to keep political districts roughly equal in population. Lawmakers also must maintain the same number of majority-black districts to comply with federal law.

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For decades, under pressure from the U.S. Department of Justice, states have been drawing political lines to carve out majority-black districts to increase minority representation. The effect has been a dramatic increase in the number of black leaders elected to office.

But Bositis, who written about the issue, said the Republican approach differs from when Democrats were in charge. Democrats created majority-black districts but also designed others with a high enough black population to elect white Democrats.

He said he would expect to see districts with very large black majorities after this year’s redistricting.

“When they’re done, they could all but ensure that the Legislature remains Republican for the rest of the decade,” Bositis said.


Read more at the Mobile Press-Register.