The Alabama Legislative Black Caucus and Alabama Democratic Conference challenged this on the grounds that it was an illegal racial gerrymander, banned under the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.

Finally, the panel held that, even if it was wrong and race was the predominant factor for the redistricting, the districts should still survive strict scrutiny because the act creating them was narrowly tailored to achieve the compelling state interest of avoiding racial retrogression which would prevent minority voters from electing their candidate of choice.

It held that racial gerrymandering claims must be considered district-by-district, rather than by looking at the state as a whole.

Finally, the Court rejected Alabama's claim that Section Five of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 compelled them to maintain the same percentage of minority voters in each district.

Section Five only bars legislative action that would diminish the ability of a minority group to elect their candidate of choice.