Georgia NAACP, residents challenge district map in county with all-white commission
Voting rights advocates in Meriwether County have filed a lawsuit challenging the districts drawn for local county commission seats, which they say illegally dilute the voting power of Black residents under the Voting Rights Act of 1965.
The lawsuit, which was filed in federal court Thursday, alleges that district maps enacted in 2022 have contributed to the lack of Black representation on the board of commissioners, despite the fact that Black voters make up “a substantial percentage” of the county’s population. The Georgia NAACP, which according to the lawsuit has roughly 100 members who reside in the county, is one of the plaintiffs.
“We will not stand by and watch Black voters in Georgia be stripped of their right to fair representation,” Georgia NAACP President Gerald Griggs said in a statement, calling the maps “a direct attack on this community’s political power.”
Meriwether County is located about 50 miles south of Atlanta. Its five-member board of commissioners, which is tasked with adopting county policies, establishing a budget and maintaining roads, bridges and other infrastructure, is currently all white.
https://georgiarecorder.com/2025/10/11/georgia-naacp-residents-challenge-district-map-in-county-with-all-white-commission/