The Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) is backing the Redistricting Data Hub (RDH) to provide essential nonpartisan voting rights data for several southern states. The initiative will focus on Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, and Mississippi—states currently facing lawsuits challenging laws that may hinder voters' ability to elect their preferred candidates.
RDH will collect, process, and host redistricting data used in litigation and challenges related to mid-decade redraws and local malapportionment. This data is crucial for hundreds of community groups, activists, nonprofit organizations, civil rights litigators, expert witnesses, academics, journalists, and special masters who rely on RDH for assembling vital redistricting datasets.
Bradley Heard from the SPLC highlighted the importance of this effort: “Redistricting has become a perennial decade-long undertaking as states continue to alter district boundaries based on electoral outcomes, particularly after the Supreme Court’s Shelby County v. Holder decision crippled Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act. This has serious implications for Black voter suppression, particularly in the Deep South.” He emphasized that SPLC's funding would enable RDH to maintain its critical data collection efforts now and in future redistricting cycles.
Kate Donovan of RDH added: “Identifying gerrymandering and proposing legal alternatives ultimately requires access to critical data. We are honored to support SPLC’s work to ensure fair districts at all levels of government by providing this data in a nonpartisan and publicly accessible way.”
The public can access this data online. Community organizations are encouraged to reach out to either SPLC or RDH for guidance on engaging with the redistricting process if there are potential changes in election district boundaries that could affect fair elections.