Lawmakers had a 10 a.m. curtain call this morning for what has been described as the most theatrical session in at least a generation. The redistricting process requires that Louisiana sacrifice a congressional seat, which state legislators have been trying to accommodate since March 20 with little success. Late Friday, a majority of Louisiana’s congressional delegation asked Gov. Bobby Jindal—even though it was technically lawmakers who called it—to postpone the special session until next year. Jindal reportedly likes the idea. Nonetheless, if there’s going to be a political punt, it’ll come at the command of House Speaker Jim Tucker, R-Algiers, and Senate President Joel Chaisson, D-Destrehan.
A source close to both men contends that Tucker and Chaisson want to get the mapping done on their own watches, rather than handing it off as they’re term limited out of office. The speaker and president have had a good row of figuring it all out. In fact, it appeared over the weekend that Tucker had placed a temporary hold on the Senate plan to redistrict itself. Tucker says there’s a technical glitch hampering the Senate plan, but newspaper reports suggest the speaker either wants to craft a more favorable Senate district for himself or possibly a Public Service Commission seat. The Board of Elementary and Secondary Education and Louisiana’s courts are also supposed to be redistricted based on the latest U.S. census figures by no later than 6 p.m. Wednesday. Read the full story here. —Jeremy Alford
