Louisiana could get 2nd majority-Black congressional district after SCOTUS decision
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The court had put a hold on a battle over whether the map is discriminatory.
The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday allowed a case involving Louisiana’s House map to move forward with review by a lower court ahead of the 2024 elections. That raises the possibility that lawmakers will have to draw a second majority-Black district in a state where Black people make up a third of the population.
The order by the high court comes only a few weeks after it decided, in a separate 5-4 ruling, that Alabama’s current House map packs too many Black voters into just one congressional district, thereby diluting their power relative to their share of the population and violating the Voting Rights Act (VRA).
More than a quarter of Alabama residents are Black.
Monday’s decision directs the Louisiana legal battle to proceed before the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals before next year’s congressional races.
A district judge originally ruled that Louisiana’s House map — which the state’s Republican-controlled Legislature passed over Democratic Gov. John Bel Edwards’ veto — violated the VRA and lawmakers were ordered to create a second majority-Black district, out of six total districts.
The state’s top election official, Republican Kyle Ardoin, appealed the district judge’s ruling. Louisiana Republicans have disputed that they are diluting the power of Black voters.
Louisiana Assistant Attorney General Angelique Freel said Monday that the state will continue to advocate for its original maps: “Our job is to defend what the Legislature passed, and we trust the 5th Circuit will review the merits in accordance with the law.”
Ardoin’s office declined to comment to ABC News because the case is pending.
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