Louisiana Republicans are in court to fight efforts to establish new Black congressional district
1 year, 2 months ago

Louisiana Republicans are in court to fight efforts to establish new Black congressional district

Associated Press  

NEW ORLEANS — Federal appeals court judges in New Orleans closely questioned voting rights advocates and attorneys for Louisiana Republican officials Friday on whether Louisiana must follow Alabama’s court-ordered path in drawing a new mostly Black congressional district — and how quickly that could and should be done ahead of next year’s elections. Louisiana is among multiple states still wrangling over congressional districts after the U.S. Supreme Court decided in June that Alabama had violated the Voting Rights Act when its Republican legislature failed to create a second Black-majority congressional district when it redrew the state’s congressional map after the 2020 census. The injunction in 2022 by U.S. District Judge Shelly Dick found that a congressional map drawn up by the Republican-dominated Legislature that year likely violated the Voting Rights Act. He argued that a proposed Black district linking parts of the Baton Rouge to rural north Louisiana’s Mississippi Delta country violates court precedents for compact districts.

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History of this topic

Supreme Court to hear case challenging Louisiana’s second majority-Black district
1 month, 3 weeks ago

Supreme Court to hear case challenging Louisiana’s second majority-Black district

Politico  

After a long, winding legal battle — which included a lower court finding in 2022 that the original map likely violated the VRA — the state legislature drew a new map that created a second majority-Black district in the state. The state, joined by civil rights groups that support the new map, appealed to the Supreme Court, seeking permission to …

Race for Louisiana’s new second majority-Black congressional district is heating up
5 months, 1 week ago

Race for Louisiana’s new second majority-Black congressional district is heating up

Associated Press  

— In a critical election year, the race for Louisiana’s new mostly Black congressional district is heating up as three candidates — including a longtime Democratic state lawmaker and former congressman and an 80-year-old Republican who is a former state senator — officially submitted paperwork on Wednesday to run in November. State Sen. Cleo Fields, a Democrat, and former GOP …

US Supreme Court sends Arkansas redistricting case back to judges after South Carolina ruling
6 months, 3 weeks ago

US Supreme Court sends Arkansas redistricting case back to judges after South Carolina ruling

Associated Press  

The Supreme Court on Monday sent a lawsuit challenging Arkansas’ 2021 U.S. House map back to a three-judge panel, ordering it to review the suit in light of the high court’s decision against similar claims of bias in a redistricting case from South Carolina. A three-judge panel last year dismissed the suit, which claimed the redrawn map violated the U.S. …

Supreme Court OKs shift of Black voters to shore up GOP congressional district
7 months ago

Supreme Court OKs shift of Black voters to shore up GOP congressional district

LA Times  

At issue in the South Carolina case was a congressional district in the Charleston area held by Republican Rep. Nancy Mace. The Supreme Court ruled Thursday that a state’s mapmakers may shift tens of thousands of Black voters to a different district if they were seeking to shore up a partisan advantage for a Republican candidate. In a 6-3 decision, …

Supreme Court orders Louisiana to use congressional map with additional Black district in 2024 vote
7 months, 1 week ago

Supreme Court orders Louisiana to use congressional map with additional Black district in 2024 vote

Associated Press  

WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Wednesday ordered Louisiana to hold congressional elections in 2024 using a House map with a second mostly Black district, despite a lower-court ruling that called the map an illegal racial gerrymander. “We are very relieved that SCOTUS agreed with us that it’s too close to the election to insert uncertainty.. We will have a …

Supreme Court upholds new Black-majority district in Louisiana that may elect Democrat to Congress
7 months, 1 week ago

Supreme Court upholds new Black-majority district in Louisiana that may elect Democrat to Congress

LA Times  

Supreme Court justices were acting on emergency appeals from civil rights lawyers as well as Louisiana’s Republican leaders. The Supreme Court on Wednesday set aside a decision by two Trump-appointed judges in Louisiana and restored a state election map that may allow Black voters to elect a Democrat to Congress this fall. In a separate case last year, the Supreme …

The U.S. Supreme Court upholds Louisiana's redistricting plan
7 months, 1 week ago

The U.S. Supreme Court upholds Louisiana's redistricting plan

NPR  

The U.S. Supreme Court upholds Louisiana's redistricting plan Enlarge this image toggle caption Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images The U.S. Supreme Court has for all practical purposes upheld a new congressional redistricting plan in Louisiana that provides for a second majority-Black district. At the same time that the court upheld the creation of a second majority-Black congressional district in …

Judges Reject Map That Would Have Given Louisiana New Majority-Black House District
7 months, 3 weeks ago

Judges Reject Map That Would Have Given Louisiana New Majority-Black House District

Huff Post  

LOADING ERROR LOADING NEW ORLEANS — A new congressional district map giving Louisiana a second majority-Black House district was rejected Tuesday by a panel of three federal judges, fueling new uncertainty about district boundaries as the state prepares for fall congressional elections. Polling takes place at the Martin Luther King Elementary School in the Lower Ninth Ward of New Orleans …

Louisiana won’t immediately get a new majority-Black House district after judges reject it
7 months, 3 weeks ago

Louisiana won’t immediately get a new majority-Black House district after judges reject it

Associated Press  

NEW ORLEANS — A new congressional map giving Louisiana a second majority-Black House district was rejected Tuesday by a panel of three federal judges, fueling new uncertainty about district boundaries as the state prepares for fall congressional elections. Jeff Landry and Murrill had backed the new map in a January legislative session after a different federal judge threw out a …

The Supreme Court is asked to pause a ruling against Louisiana's congressional map
7 months, 3 weeks ago

The Supreme Court is asked to pause a ruling against Louisiana's congressional map

NPR  

The Supreme Court is asked to pause a ruling against Louisiana's congressional map Enlarge this image toggle caption Gerald Herbert/AP Gerald Herbert/AP The state of Louisiana and a group of Black Louisiana voters have asked the U.S. Supreme Court to put a hold on a lower court order that is blocking Louisiana from using the state's new congressional map for …

New Black congressional district in Louisiana bows to politics, not race, backers say
8 months, 1 week ago

New Black congressional district in Louisiana bows to politics, not race, backers say

Associated Press  

NEW ORLEANS — Politics and race are both factors in a pending court challenge of Louisiana’s new congressional maps. The map creates a new mostly Black congressional district in Louisiana, at the expense of a white Republican incumbent, Rep. Garret Graves, who backed another Republican in the governor’s election last fall. Twelve self-described non-African American voters argued in a lawsuit …

Judge: Louisiana legislative districts dilute Black voting strength, violate the Voting Rights Act
10 months, 2 weeks ago

Judge: Louisiana legislative districts dilute Black voting strength, violate the Voting Rights Act

Associated Press  

NEW ORLEANS — New state House and Senate boundary lines drawn up by the Louisiana Legislature in 2022 dilute Black voting strength in violation of the U.S. Voting Rights Act, a federal judge in Baton Rouge ruled Thursday. U.S. District Judge Shelly Dick’s ruling blocked the use of the House and Senate district maps in future elections and gave the …

A lawsuit seeks to block Louisiana’s new congressional map that has 2nd mostly Black district
10 months, 3 weeks ago

A lawsuit seeks to block Louisiana’s new congressional map that has 2nd mostly Black district

Associated Press  

NEW ORLEANS — The Louisiana Legislature’s redrawn congressional map giving the state a second mostly Black district is being challenged by 12 self-described “non-African American” voters in a new lawsuit. The challenge filed Wednesday and assigned to a judge in Lafayette says the map, which Republican lawmakers agreed to as a result of a 2022 federal lawsuit filed in Baton …

After a court fight, Louisiana's new congressional map boosts Black political power
11 months ago

After a court fight, Louisiana's new congressional map boosts Black political power

NPR  

After a court fight, Louisiana's new congressional map boosts Black political power Enlarge this image toggle caption Michael Johnson/The Advocate/Pool via AP Michael Johnson/The Advocate/Pool via AP BATON ROUGE, La. A federal court had given Louisiana's legislature until Jan. 30 to redraw its map in compliance with the federal Voting Rights Act, forcing lawmakers to add a second majority-Black district. …

Louisiana lawmakers pass new congressional map with second majority-Black district
11 months ago

Louisiana lawmakers pass new congressional map with second majority-Black district

Associated Press  

— The Louisiana Legislature passed a congressional map with a second majority-Black district on Friday, marking a win for Democrats and civil rights groups after a legal battle and political tug-of-war that spanned nearly two years. During the special session this week, Landry has repeatedly urged the Legislature to adopt a new map that would satisfy the court, instead of …

Newly sworn in, Louisiana’s governor calls for special session to draw new congressional map
11 months, 2 weeks ago

Newly sworn in, Louisiana’s governor calls for special session to draw new congressional map

Associated Press  

— In his first hours in office, Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry on Monday called a redistricting special session, giving lawmakers the opportunity to draw and replace the state’s current congressional map that a federal judge said violates the Voting Rights Act by diluting the power of Black voters. But the session looks to go beyond just tackling Louisiana’s congressional map, …

Federal judge accepts redrawn Georgia congressional and legislative districts that will favor GOP
11 months, 3 weeks ago

Federal judge accepts redrawn Georgia congressional and legislative districts that will favor GOP

Associated Press  

ATLANTA — A federal judge on Thursday accepted new Georgia congressional and legislative voting districts that protect Republican partisan advantages, saying the creation of new majority-Black voting districts solved the illegal minority vote dilution that led him to order maps to be redrawn. McBath said in a statement that she wouldn’t “allow an extremist few Republicans” to “decide when my …

Louisiana lawmakers have until Jan. 15 to enact new congressional map, court says
1 year, 1 month ago

Louisiana lawmakers have until Jan. 15 to enact new congressional map, court says

Associated Press  

— The Louisiana Legislature has until Jan. 15 to enact a new congressional map after a lower court last year ruled that the current political boundaries dilute the power of the state’s Black voters, a federal New Orleans appeals court said Friday. U.S. District Judge Shelly Dick said in her ruling that “evidence of Louisiana’s long and ongoing history of …

Georgia says it will appeal a judge’s redistricting decision but won’t seek to pause ruling for now
1 year, 1 month ago

Georgia says it will appeal a judge’s redistricting decision but won’t seek to pause ruling for now

Associated Press  

ATLANTA — Georgia says it will appeal a judge’s order to redraw some congressional and state legislative districts, but that it won’t fight in court to pause the order for now, meaning a special session later this month to draw new lines is likely to proceed. A federal judge ruled last week that some of Georgia’s congressional, state Senate and …

Judge says Georgia’s congressional and legislative districts are discriminatory and must be redrawn
1 year, 1 month ago

Judge says Georgia’s congressional and legislative districts are discriminatory and must be redrawn

Associated Press  

ATLANTA — A federal judge ruled Thursday that some of Georgia’s congressional, state Senate and state House districts were drawn in a racially discriminatory manner, ordering the state to draw an additional Black-majority congressional district. U.S. District Judge Steve Jones, in a 516-page order, also ordered the state to draw two new Black-majority districts in Georgia’s 56-member state Senate and …

The Supreme Court refuses to speed the drawing of a new congressional map in Louisiana
1 year, 2 months ago

The Supreme Court refuses to speed the drawing of a new congressional map in Louisiana

Associated Press  

WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Thursday rejected an emergency appeal from Black voters in Louisiana to speed the process of drawing new congressional districts in the state. The appeals court said U.S. District Judge Shelly Dick was moving too fast and must give the state more time to consider a new map. Civil rights groups had hoped a new …

The Supreme Court signals support for a Republican-leaning congressional district in South Carolina
1 year, 2 months ago

The Supreme Court signals support for a Republican-leaning congressional district in South Carolina

Associated Press  

WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Wednesday seemed likely to preserve the Republican hold on a South Carolina congressional district against a claim that it treats Black voters unfairly. The court’s six conservative justices signaled skepticism with a lower court ruling that ordered South Carolina to redraw a coastal district that is held by Republican Rep. Nancy Mace. Kavanaugh and …

Black voting power gets boost in Alabama as new US House districts chosen by federal judges
1 year, 2 months ago

Black voting power gets boost in Alabama as new US House districts chosen by federal judges

Associated Press  

MONTGOMERY, Ala. — Federal judges on Thursday selected new congressional lines for Alabama to give the Deep South state a second district where Black voters comprise a substantial portion of the electorate. The U.S. Supreme Court in June upheld the three-judge panel’s finding that Alabama’s prior map — with one majority-Black district out of seven in a state that is …

A Supreme Court redistricting ruling gave hope to Black voters. They’re still waiting for new maps
1 year, 3 months ago

A Supreme Court redistricting ruling gave hope to Black voters. They’re still waiting for new maps

Associated Press  

WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court’s decision siding with Black voters in an Alabama redistricting case gave Democrats and voting rights activists a surprising opportunity before the 2024 elections. Shawn Donahue of the State University of New York at Buffalo, an expert on voting rights and redistricting, said the Supreme Court could put a quick end to the delays and “summarily …

A Georgia trial arguing redistricting harmed Black voters could decide control of a US House seat
1 year, 3 months ago

A Georgia trial arguing redistricting harmed Black voters could decide control of a US House seat

Associated Press  

ATLANTA — Democrats could gain a seat in the U.S. House and multiple seats in Georgia’s Legislature if a judge rules Republicans drew maps illegally weakening Black voters’ power. Court cases challenging district lines drawn after the 2020 Census could shape 2024 congressional elections in states beyond Alabama and Georgia, including Florida, Louisiana, South Carolina and Texas. “Despite these striking …

Plaintiffs in voting rights case urge judges to toss Alabama’s new congressional map
1 year, 4 months ago

Plaintiffs in voting rights case urge judges to toss Alabama’s new congressional map

Associated Press  

MONTGOMERY, Ala. — Voting rights activists are returning to court to fight Alabama’s redrawn congressional districts, saying state Republicans failed to follow federal court orders to create a district that is fair to Black voters. A special three-judge panel in 2022 blocked use of the the state’s existing districts and said any new congressional map should include two districts where …

Judge refuses to toss discrimination lawsuits over Georgia voting districts
1 year, 5 months ago

Judge refuses to toss discrimination lawsuits over Georgia voting districts

Associated Press  

ATLANTA — A judge has refused to dismiss lawsuits alleging Georgia’s congressional and legislative districts illegally discriminate against Black voters. The orders apply to three cases, one challenging the lines of Georgia’s 14 congressional districts and two challenging the lines of the 56 state Senate and 180 state House districts. In the state legislative cases, the challengers argue a map …

Supreme Court unfreezes Louisiana redistricting case that could boost Black voting power before 2024
1 year, 5 months ago

Supreme Court unfreezes Louisiana redistricting case that could boost Black voting power before 2024

Associated Press  

WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Monday lifted its hold on a Louisiana political remap case, increasing the likelihood that the Republican-dominated state will have to redraw boundary lines to create a second mostly Black congressional district. “What this does is it puts us back on track to realize a second majority-minority district.” In a written statement, the Louisiana Legislative …

Supreme Court voting rights ruling stuns minority voters, who hope it expands their representation
1 year, 6 months ago

Supreme Court voting rights ruling stuns minority voters, who hope it expands their representation

Associated Press  

WASHINGTON — This week’s Supreme Court decision ordering Alabama to redraw its congressional districts was seen by many minority lawmakers and voting rights activists as a stunning victory with the potential to become a major stepping stone for undoing political maps that dilute the strength of communities of color. “As I said when I vetoed it, Louisiana’s current congressional map …

Supreme Court rules in favor of Black Alabama voters in unexpected defense of Voting Rights Act
1 year, 6 months ago

Supreme Court rules in favor of Black Alabama voters in unexpected defense of Voting Rights Act

Associated Press  

WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Thursday issued a surprising 5-4 ruling in favor of Black voters in a congressional redistricting case from Alabama, with two conservative justices joining liberals in rejecting a Republican-led effort to weaken a landmark voting rights law. Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Brett Kavanaugh aligned with the court’s liberals in affirming a lower-court ruling …

Supreme Court upholds Voting Rights Act — and might have helped doom Republicans in 2024
1 year, 6 months ago

Supreme Court upholds Voting Rights Act — and might have helped doom Republicans in 2024

Raw Story  

The Supreme Court stunned political observers on Thursday in the closely watched Allen v. Milligan case, ruling that Alabama likely violated the Voting Rights Act's prohibition on racial gerrymandering when it drew a map that packs most of the state's Black voters into a single congressional district — and the decision could make it harder for Republicans to hold the …

Supreme Court to review South Carolina congressional map for discrimination against Black voters
1 year, 7 months ago

Supreme Court to review South Carolina congressional map for discrimination against Black voters

Associated Press  

WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court has agreed to decide whether South Carolina’s congressional districts need to be redrawn because they discriminate against Black voters. The justices said Monday they would review a lower-court ruling that found a coastal district running from Charleston to Hilton Head was intentionally redrawn to reduce the number of Democratic-leaning Black voters and to make it …

Justices nix 2nd mostly Black district in Louisiana for 2022
2 years, 5 months ago

Justices nix 2nd mostly Black district in Louisiana for 2022

Associated Press  

BATON ROUGE — The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday put on hold a lower court ruling that Louisiana must draw new congressional districts before the 2022 elections to increase Black voting power. With the three liberal justices dissenting, the high court short-circuited the earlier order from U.S. District Judge Shelly Dick to create a second majority Black congressional district in …

Louisiana session ends: No new map with a 2nd Black district
2 years, 6 months ago

Louisiana session ends: No new map with a 2nd Black district

Associated Press  

— Louisiana lawmakers ended a special session Saturday saying they were unable to agree on a new congressional map that includes a second majority Black district as ordered by a federal judge, prompting an angry blast from the governor. U.S. District Judge Shelly Dick on June 6 had struck down the state’s original U.S. House map approved earlier this year …

Legislators ask more time to comply with redistricting order
2 years, 6 months ago

Legislators ask more time to comply with redistricting order

Associated Press  

Louisiana’s legislative leaders are asking for at least 10 more days to comply with a federal judge’s order to redraw congressional districts so two have Black majorities. Also Tuesday, a federal appeals court scheduled arguments July 8 about Judge Shelly Dick’s ruling that the current districts violate the Voting Rights Act. “There are 144 legislators in the State Legislature, and …

Order for Louisiana to redraw US House districts put on hold
2 years, 6 months ago

Order for Louisiana to redraw US House districts put on hold

Associated Press  

NEW ORLEANS — A federal appeals court has put on hold a district judge’s order for Louisiana to redraw new congressional districts by June 20 to include a second majority Black district. Lawyers for Secretary of State Kyle Ardoin wrote in a motion filed Friday that Dick’s order would itself require a racial gerrymander that would violate the Voting Rights …

Judge won’t delay order for congressional remap in Louisiana
2 years, 6 months ago

Judge won’t delay order for congressional remap in Louisiana

Associated Press  

NEW ORLEANS — A federal judge in Baton Rouge refused on Thursday to delay her order for Louisiana to redraw its congressional districts while the state’s top elections official appeals. Court papers for Secretary of State Kyle Ardoin call the deadline “unworkable.” But Dick wrote that the state’s argument was “insincere and not persuasive.” The state requires seven days’ notice …

Louisiana legislative districts challenged by Black voters
2 years, 9 months ago

Louisiana legislative districts challenged by Black voters

Associated Press  

NEW ORLEANS — New district maps for the Louisiana House and Senate illegally dilute Black voting strength, a lawsuit alleges. The suit, filed late Monday in U.S. District Court in Baton Rouge, says the new maps “embody Louisiana’s legacy of discrimination.” It asks that the new legislative districts be declared unconstitutional and that election officials be blocked from holding elections …

Lawsuit challenges Arkansas congressional redistricting plan
2 years, 9 months ago

Lawsuit challenges Arkansas congressional redistricting plan

Associated Press  

— A federal lawsuit was filed Monday challenging Arkansas’ new U.S. House district lines, claiming the new boundaries violate Black voters’ rights and weaken their influence by splitting the Little Rock area among three congressional districts. The lawsuit filed by six residents, including two Black Democratic state lawmakers, said the redistricting plan approved by the majority-Republican Legislature last year violates …

Judge to toss Arkansas redistricting case unless DOJ joins
2 years, 10 months ago

Judge to toss Arkansas redistricting case unless DOJ joins

Associated Press  

— A federal judge said Thursday he’s dismissing a lawsuit challenging Arkansas’ new state House districts as diluting the influence of Black voters, unless the Justice Department joins the case as a plaintiff. U.S. District Judge Lee Rudofsky said there’s “a strong merits case that at least some of the challenged districts” in the lawsuit by two groups violate the …

In win for GOP, Supreme Court blocks new Black-majority district in Alabama
2 years, 10 months ago

In win for GOP, Supreme Court blocks new Black-majority district in Alabama

LA Times  

In its first decision on this decade’s congressional redistricting, the Supreme Court on Monday sided with Alabama’s Republicans and blocked the creation of a new Black-majority district in the state. By a 5-4 vote, the justices set aside for now a ruling by a panel of three judges, two of whom were President Trump appointees, who said the state Republican-controlled …

Racial representation an issue in Louisiana redistricting
2 years, 10 months ago

Racial representation an issue in Louisiana redistricting

Associated Press  

NEW ORLEANS — Data from the 2020 census shows that 56% of Louisiana’s people identify as white, more than 31% as Black and nearly 7% Hispanic or Latino, yet only one of the state’s six U.S. House members is Black. “Every district is going to have to change, and every member needs to be expecting that change,” state Rep. John …

Lawsuit challenges new Alabama congressional districts
3 years, 1 month ago

Lawsuit challenges new Alabama congressional districts

Associated Press  

MONTGOMERY, Ala. — Two lawsuits are challenging Alabama’s newly approved congressional map, arguing it unlawfully dilutes the voting strength of African Americans with one majority-minority district out of seven. A lawsuit backed by an organization aligned with a Democratic group says the plan violates the Voting Rights Act “because it strategically cracks and packs Alabama’s Black communities, diluting Black voting …

Democrats: Judge should move now to redraw districts
3 years, 7 months ago

Democrats: Judge should move now to redraw districts

Associated Press  

NEW ORLEANS — A lawsuit filed by eight southeast Louisiana Democrats says a New Orleans judge should prepare now to redraw the state’s congressional district map because the Democratic governor and a majority Republican Legislature won’t be able to agree on a plan in time for the 2022 elections. Because census details needed to redraw the maps for the 2022 …

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