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A congressional map creating Louisiana’s second majority-Black district will be used in this fall’s elections despite being rejected by three federal judges earlier this month on grounds of illegal racial gerrymandering.
Acting on emergency appeals filed by Black voters and Republican elected officials, the U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday ordered Louisiana to use the map this fall. The order only prevents another map from being drawn for this fall’s elections and does not weigh in on the argument that the map relies too heavily on race. The court may consider that argument at a later date.
The map was drawn in a January redistricting special session after a federal judge rejected a different map drawn in 2022 that maintained only one majority-Black district and five majority-white districts in a state that is about one-third Black.
A group of 12 plaintiffs sued Louisiana Secretary of State Nancy Landry in response to the new map, alleging that it violates civil rights protected by the 14th and 15th amendments. According to the plaintiffs, lawmakers aimed to segregate voters based “entirely on their races.” Attorney General Liz Murrell later filed to intervene as a defendant representing the state of Louisiana.
