NAACP Files Lawsuit Challenging Election Map in Fayette County, Tennessee

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

February 28, 2025

Contact: Chyna Fields, cfields@naacpnet.org

Tenn. — Today, the NAACP along with Donati Law, LLP and the Legal Defense Fund filed a lawsuit on behalf of the Fayette-Somerville Branch of the NAACP and 5 individual Black voters which challenges a racially discriminatory electoral map in Fayette County, Tennessee.

Janette McCarthy-Wallace, NAACP General Counsel, shared the following statement:

"This electoral map is yet another blatant attempt to dilute Black voting power and undermine the fundamental right to fair representation. Black voters in Fayette County deserve an equal opportunity to elect leaders who reflect their communities and priorities. We will not stand by while this injustice persists — we are prepared to use every legal resource available to challenge this map and ensure that democracy works for all, not just a select few."

The lawsuit asserts that the Fayette County Commission map created during the 2021 redistricting process is racially discriminatory in violation of Section 2 of Voting Rights Act and the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amendments of the U.S. Constitution. The map intentionally dilutes Black voting power and denies Black Fayette voters an equal opportunity to elect representatives of their choice.

 "The County Commission map denies Black Fayette County residents' access to political representation,"said Elton Holmes, President of the Fayette-Somerville Branch of the NAACP. "It's unacceptable in 2025 that the Commission is an all-white body given the demographics, voting patterns, and other ways that Black voters experience life in Fayette County. We must fight against all efforts to limit Black voters' voice in Fayette County's political bodies."

Although Black voters make up more than a quarter of the Fayette County's population, they have zero representation on the nineteen-member and all-white County Commission. In enacting the map, the County Commission deviated from its guidelines to protect minority voters' opportunity to elect their preferred candidates and failed to heed its legal counsel's public warnings that failing to draw districts comprised of a majority-Black voters, in light of current voting patterns and other barriers facing Black voters, could expose Fayette County to legal liability. The County Commission also rejected alternative proposed plans that respected its guidelines and would have lessened the racially discriminatory impact that community members and some County Commissioners repeatedly raised.

"Fayette County lawmakers have evaded their statutory and constitutional duties by enacting a map that — despite warnings against and alternatives to it — is designed to dilute Black voting power in Fayette County," said LDF assistant counsel John Cusick. "The promise of full citizenship and equal access to the political process remains unfulfilled for Black voters in Fayette County. This lawsuit sends a clear message: Fayette County must remedy these violations and pass a fair and non-racially discriminatory." 

"The rights of Fayette County voters to have their County Commission districts set in a legal, fair, and non-discriminatory manner were unquestionably violated in this case," said Don Donati, Founding Attorney at Donati Law, PLLC. "We are proud to stand with our co-counsel and clients to vindicate these important principles." 

The full lawsuit can be found here.

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About NAACP

The NAACP advocates, agitates, and litigates for the civil rights due to Black America. Our legacy is built on the foundation of grassroots activism by the biggest civil rights pioneers of the 20th century and is sustained by 21st century activists. From classrooms and courtrooms to city halls and Congress, our network of members across the country works to secure the social and political power that will end race-based discrimination. That work is rooted in racial equity, civic engagement, and supportive policies and institutions for all marginalized people. We are committed to a world without racism where Black people enjoy equitable opportunities in thriving communities.

NOTE: The Legal Defense Fund – also referred to as the NAACP-LDF - was founded in 1940 as a part of the NAACP, but now operates as a completely separate entity.