A federal appeals court in Louisiana has upheld a lower court ruling that found a revised state congressional map violated the Voting Rights Act of 1965 by diminishing the collective influence of Black voters.
The ruling, handed down by a three-judge panel in the U.S. Fifth Circuit on Nov. 10, orders state legislators to complete a new map with reconfigured voting districts by Jan. 15 “for the result to be used for the 2024 Louisiana congressional elections.”
The ruling comes as several Republican-led states face legal challenges and increased scrutiny from the NAACP and other advocacy groups that allege the GOP was carrying out racial discrimination through gerrymandering, with the intent of excluding Black voters.
The Fifth Circuit justified its decision on the matter by citing a U.S. Supreme Court ruling in June, which determined Alabama had violated the Voting Rights Act by shutting out Black voters from the redistricting process, saying, “we now apply the court’s reasoning to the Louisiana redistricting.”
In September, the federal judge overseeing the Alabama case ordered the appointment of a special master to redraw the congressional map after state lawmakers submitted a second redrawn map that didn’t comply with the Supreme Court order to strengthen the state’s Black and minority voter pool.
Meanwhile, Louisiana’s newly elected governor, Republican Jeff Landry, said he planned to call for a special legislative session to take up the matter as soon as he takes office in January but expressed doubt about whether there was enough time to complete the map before the Jan. 15 deadline.
But outgoing Democratic Gov. Jon Bel Edwards has shown no desire to launch a special session at the end of his term, saying, “I remain confident that we will have a fair map with two majority Black districts before the congressional elections next year.”
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