Supreme Court to Hear Appeal on Louisiana’s Congressional Districts, Case Won’t Affect 2024 Elections

The U.S. Supreme Court announced on Monday that it will hear an appeal concerning the congressional districts in Louisiana, which have been reshaped to be more favorable to Democratic candidates. However, the decision will not impact the upcoming 2024 elections.

The ongoing dispute over the division of Louisiana into six congressional districts has seen multiple encounters with the Supreme Court over the years. The current congressional map, revised following court rulings that found the previous version diluted the voting power of Black residents, includes two majority-Black districts.

The upcoming Supreme Court ruling, expected next year, could have significant implications for other states, potentially clarifying how lawmakers can consider the race of voters when drawing district lines in compliance with the Voting Rights Act.

Louisiana officials described their situation as an “endless game of ping-pong,” emphasizing the challenges faced in creating a compliant map. After the 2020 census, the state’s initial map was rejected by federal courts for including only one majority-Black district, despite Black residents constituting approximately one-third of Louisiana’s population. Following this, the map was redrawn to include two majority-Black districts. However, a lawsuit was filed by a group of “non-African American” plaintiffs, including several prominent White Republicans, claiming that the new map overly relied on racial considerations. A three-judge district court sided with the plaintiffs.

Currently, the map provides Louisiana Democrats with the opportunity to potentially add a second representative to their congressional delegation in the upcoming elections. The case has garnered attention from civil rights organizations and election analysts alike, with many viewing it as a potential landmark case that could influence redistricting practices across the nation.

At the heart of the legal battle lies the district that runs diagonally from Shreveport in the northwest to Baton Rouge in the southeast, spanning approximately 250 miles. This district is designed to ensure that Black residents comprise about 54% of the voters, a significant increase from the 24% representation under the previous boundaries.

Earlier this year, Louisiana’s congressional map was brought before the Supreme Court’s emergency docket in May, which permitted the current districts to be used for the November elections. As the appeal progresses, all eyes will be on the Supreme Court to see how it addresses the complex issues surrounding race and redistricting, and the broader implications for electoral maps in other states across the country.