Warnock Says Congressional Black Caucus Fight Betrays Black Seats
Georgia U.S. Sen. Raphael Warnock said Republicans rushing to redraw maps and eliminate seats held by Black lawmakers are committing a betrayal, as the congressional black caucus and voting-rights advocates watch a new redistricting push spread across Southern states. He said the fight could erase gains made since the Civil Rights Movement.
Warnock said the effort is “a betrayal of the highest in the American ideals.” He also said politicians who praise Martin Luther King Jr. in January are “dismembering his legacy in real time.”
Warnock and Ebenezer Baptist Church
Warnock, who serves as head pastor of Atlanta’s Ebenezer Baptist Church, said preserving voting rights is one of his top priorities in the Senate. He made voting rights the topic of his inaugural floor speech in 2021 and is a lead sponsor of the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act.
He said the redistricting effort could have lasting consequences because it may unravel progress made during the Civil Rights Movement. Warnock added, “Democracy is the house that we actually live in.” “So, when you go after that, it’s like setting the house on fire,” he said.
Louisiana v. Callais Last Month
Republicans in Georgia and other Southern states began redrawing maps after the Supreme Court’s Louisiana v. Callais decision last month, which narrowed a key provision of the Voting Rights Act that outlawed discrimination based on race. The ruling also opened the way for states to draw highly partisan maps while narrowing the opportunity for opponents to object on racial-discrimination grounds.
Warnock said any effort to create more Republican-held seats will likely decrease the number of Black lawmakers because Black voters overwhelmingly vote for and run for office as Democrats. He said, “And Congress works best — your local city council works best — when it looks like America, when you have that kind of representation.”
Brian Kemp’s June Session
Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp has called for a June special session to draw maps that would go into effect during the 2028 election year. Kemp said critics have not seen the maps yet and should wait and see what the Legislature does.
The practical effect for Georgia voters is simple: the map fight is now headed into the Legislature, and the outcome could shape how many Black lawmakers can hold seats in 2028. Warnock framed that fight as one over representation itself, not just district lines.
