Redistricting dropped from Ga. special legislative session Archives

Legislative and Congressional redistricting that was expected to be the main activity during a Georgia General Assembly special session that began on Wednesday will not take place after all.

Republican legislative leaders announced shortly after the session began on Wednesday that they won’t be redrawing lines following a recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling that has sparked similar efforts in other Southern states.

Gov. Brian Kemp called for the special session for redistricting and to address issues with QR codes related to elections.

That followed a U.S. Supreme Court ruling in April affecting how Southern states subject to the Voting Rights Act of 1965 can factor race in redistricting.

But during a press conference at the Georgia Capitol, GOP leaders said the special session instead will focus on property tax relief and ratifying a gas tax suspension from last month.

“We believe it is prudent to allow the judicial process to continue developing in other states and to carefully evaluate how courts rule on newly adopted district maps across the country,” Georgia Senate President Pro Tem Larry Walker said.

“With this guidance, we are confident that Georgia’s new districts will ultimately withstand legal scrutiny and that Georgia will prevail in defending its position in court.

“For these reasons, the Senate sent a letter to Governor Kemp informing him that redistricting will not be taken up during this Special Legislative Session. Instead, we recommended continuing to monitor legal developments, gathering additional public input and taking the time necessary to fully evaluate all available options before considering changes to Georgia’s maps.”

In response, Kemp said that he doesn’t think “there is reason to delay the apportionment process” but that “legislative districting, however, is the responsibility of the General Assembly, and it is within their discretion to defer the issue until a later date.”

Georgia Senate Minority Leader Harold Jones said the decision to drop redistricting is “a victory for the people of Georgia, make no mistake. It was the people of George that put pressure on this General Assembly.”

The new maps that would have been redrawn would not have gone into effect until the 2028 elections. Republicans control both chambers of the Georgia legislature and are expected to main their majorities in the November elections.

But GOP leaders have worried about energizing Democratic voters for November.

Democratic U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff is seeking a second term against U.S. Rep. Mike Collins, and Republican gubernatorial nominee Rick Jackson is facing Democratic former Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms.

Collins and Jackson won Republican runoffs Tuesday that split some of the Republican voting base.

Other Southern states have tried to redraw electoral maps for the 2026 elections, which critics contend will dilute minority voting strength by making it easier to eliminate majority-black districts.

During the special session, Georgia lawmakers will need to address a July 1 deadline to comply with a 2024 law mandating the discontinuation of QR codes as the primary method to count election ballots.

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