Sen. Alsobrooks says Marylanders favor a renewed look at redistricting
BALTIMORE - U.S. Sen. Angela Alsobrooks says she believes Marylanders support a renewed effort to redraw congressional district maps to "meet the moment."
"These are extraordinary times, and I think it does require extraordinary measures, and I think Marylanders support it," the Democratic Maryland senator told The Baltimore Sun.
You'll recall that the clock ran out during the General Assembly legislative session on Gov. Wes Moore's bid to redraw the boundaries to maximize Democrats' electoral prospects.
Moore, following national Democrats' lead, had advocated for months for a new Maryland map that could help his party win majority control of the U.S. House and blunt Republican President Donald Trump's agenda. State Senate President Bill Ferguson resisted the governor's push, saying the effort could backfire against Democrats in the courts.
But Ferguson said circumstances have changed as a result of an April 29 Supreme Court ruling and that he has been reconsidering the matter.
The decision, stemming from a Louisiana congressional map dispute, narrowed when governments can consider race in drawing voting districts and raised the threshold for proving discrimination claims under the Voting Rights Act.
The White House applauded the decision, saying in a statement that the "6-3 Supreme Court decision in the Callais case is a BIG WIN for Equal Protection under the Law, as it returns the Voting Rights Act to its Original Intent…"
But Alsobrooks, Maryland's first Black U.S. senator, said the ruling showed "utter disregard for the rule of law, for the rights of people. These are hard-fought rights that people died for."
She said Marylanders "understand the moment we're in, and we want to meet that moment. We want to make sure that people are not disenfranchised."
Alsobrooks, a first-term senator, was named by Moore in 2025 to chair the Redistricting Advisory Commission that recommended new district boundaries.
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This story was originally published June 1, 2026 at 2:05 PM.