Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey on Friday announced the Republican-controlled state legislature will hold a special session next week to pave the way for redistricting – becoming the second state to take action following the Supreme Court’s decision further weakening the Voting Rights Act.

Lawmakers will meet starting Monday to establish a special primary election for both US House and state Senate districts “whose boundary lines are altered by court action,” Ivey, a Republican, said in her proclamation.

The state’s primary election is slated for May 19.

In the immediate aftermath of the high court’s Wednesday ruling striking down a majority-Black congressional district in Louisiana, Ivey indicated that her state would not attempt to redraw its lines. Alabama currently is under a court order prohibiting the state from redistricting until after the 2030 census.

But Ivey and other officials have faced intense pressure to act. Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall on Thursday filed motions asking the high court to move quickly to lift the injunctions so Alabama can proceed with redistricting.

State efforts to redraw their lines ahead of November’s midterm elections carry high stakes for both political parties. Republicans currently hold a paper-thin majority in the House, and both parties have waged a coast-to-coast mid-decade redistricting war for months, seeking to eke out a partisan advantage.

Redistricting typically occurs once a decade, after the census.

This week’s ruling from the Supreme Court – which makes it significantly harder to challenge redistricting plans as discriminatory – has set off a fresh redistricting scramble.

In a statement, Ivey said she is calling the special session in the hopes that the state will prevail in court. Alabama is currently represented in the US House by five Republicans and two Democrats, after courts ordered the creation of a second congressional district with a sizable Black population.

Ivey’s action comes a day after Republican officials in Louisiana announced that they were delaying the state’s primary elections for US House, although overseas ballots have already been mailed. Louisiana officials say they will not count votes cast in the May 16 election for US House seats, as the legislature looks to draw a new map.

Voters, civil rights organizations and other groups have filed legal challenges, seeking to block the Louisiana plan.

CNN’s John Fritze contributed to this report.

HUNTSVILLE, Ala. (WAFF) – Alabama’s new grocery tax holiday starts May 1 and runs through the end of June.

For the first time since sales tax was created in 1939, shoppers in the state will not pay state tax on groceries.

House Bill 527 became law in early April. For the next three years, Alabamians will get two months without the 2 percent grocery tax.

State representative Mike Shaw added the holiday to the bill that Huntsville representative James Lomax sponsored.

According to the USDA, the average family of four spends around $1,000 a month on groceries. Without the 2 percent tax, that family would save around $40 by the end of the two-month holiday.

“One thing I hear from my constituents all the time is, when are we going to get rid of the grocery tax?” Shaw said. “Because we’re doing it in an incremental way, every step doesn’t sound like a lot. But when you add the 2 percent, we’ve already cut and the 2 percent of the grocery tax holiday, it’s going to be a significant chunk of cash in people’s pockets over time.”

The grocery tax has already been slashed in half since 2023.

Shopper Kelli Taylor said any break helps.

“Last month I could fill my vehicle up for 60 bucks. Last week, it was 93 dollars, so everything’s going up,” Taylor said. “So, to me, any break is a welcomed break, and 2 percent is a lot more than 0 percent, so I’ll take it,” Taylor said.

Alabama is one of only eight states that still has a grocery tax. Shaw said lawmakers will keep pushing toward eliminating it entirely.

An important part is making sure the Education Trust Fund (ETF) can handle it, which has lost millions of dollars of grocery tax funding since the cuts.

The holiday only applies to the state tax. Local city and county sales taxes on food remain in effect.

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Alabama AI officer Aaron Wright began work Monday April 27 as the state’s first Chief Artificial Intelligence Officer, a newly created position housed within the Alabama Office of Information Technology.

Wright, who has more than 25 years of experience in health care and state government technology, most recently served as AOIT’s director of application development. He also led the Data Management and Ownership working group within the governor’s Generative AI Task Force.

Wright said in a statement that AI adoption across state agencies has already been underway through informal coordination, and the new role is designed to build on that foundation.

“AI is no longer a future technology; it is here now,” Wright said. “It has become integrated into existing tool sets, and people are using AI tools and platforms throughout their day to enhance and streamline their work.”

He described the position as collaborative rather than regulatory.

“The CAIO position is not intended to be a gatekeeper or a blocker of innovation for Alabama’s agencies,” Wright said, calling it “an advocate, a facilitator, and, when needed, a voice of caution” as agencies adopt AI tools.

Secretary of Information Technology Daniel Urquhart said Wright’s background “positions Alabama to thoughtfully and effectively harness artificial intelligence in ways that can improve outcomes for our agencies and the people we serve.”

Wright said his first priority is creating a shared environment for agencies to compare notes on AI adoption, and that early projects include an AI chatbot for the OIT website.

“Residents should see government services that are simpler, faster and more reliable,” Wright said, including “shorter wait times, more intuitive digital experiences, and better access to information when and where they need it.”

Sawyer Knowles is a capitol reporter for Yellowhammer News. You may contact him at [email protected].