elections

A spat over congressional redistricting in Texas marks the latest episode in a long national history of gerrymandering. Democratic lawmakers have fled Texas to try to block Republicans from redrawing congressional districts in their favor. The term "gerrymander" originated over 200 years ago to describe political manipulation in legislative districts. A fight before the U.S. Supreme Court that created Alabama’s new U.S. House in District 2 shows how new maps can be challenged. The legal case was featured in Alabama Public Radio’s new interview program “APR Notebook.”

Georgia's Ethics Commission says a political action committee linked to what federal investigators have called a Ponzi scheme illegally sought to influence elections. The complaint says the spending came from the now-dissolved Georgia Republican Assembly PAC between 2021 and 2024. Investigators say the Frost family also spent money on campaigns in Alabama.

Following the election, significant spikes in searches for moving out of America suggest heightened interest in international relocation, including in Alabama. The relocation tech company moveBuddha identifies the states with the highest interest in top international destinations and each state's top move-to country.

A federal judge is halting an Alabama program that made thousands of legal voters inactive ahead of the November elections. Republican Secretary of State Wes Allen launched the program in August, saying it would begin a process of removing non-citizens from the state's voter rolls.

While the practice of ballot collection is legal in 35 states, the rules vary significantly from state to state. In some states, the laws are so vague that they are open to interpretation. Alabama is the only state where only the voter is permitted to return the ballot unless there is an emergency situation.

The first general election ballots for the presidential race are going out as Alabama officials begin mailing them to absentee voters with the Nov. 5 contest less than two months away. Wednesday's milestone is a sign of how quickly Election Day is approaching.

Kamala Harris and Donald Trump met Tuesday, Sept. 10 in their first and perhaps only debate before the presidential election, debating on abortion, immigration and American democracy. The ruling by the Alabama Supreme Court that declared frozen embryos are children was also a talking point for both candidates.

Opposing lawyers are battling in court over a new Alabama law that makes it illegal for outside parties to deliver or prefill someone’s absentee ballot application. A federal judge heard arguments Wednesday over a lawsuit challenging the new restrictions.

On Friday, April 26, Montgomery Mayor Steven L. Reed will be sworn in as president of the African American Mayors Association (AAMA), the nation’s only organization exclusively representing Black mayors in the United States. Reed, who is currently the organization’s 1st Vice President, will lead the organization through the 2024 presidential elections and the start of the 119th Congress.

Alabama lawmakers advanced legislation to ensure President Joe Biden will appear on the state's November ballot, mirroring accommodations made four years ago for then-President Donald Trump. Lyndon Johnson, Harry Truman, and Abraham Lincoln were all left off Alabama’s President Ballot.