2 years, 6 months ago

Judge won’t delay order for congressional remap in Louisiana

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 of the start of the session and three days for bill reading, she wrote. She noted that House Speaker Clay Schexnayder, who joined the suit on Ardoin’s side, told another judge that Louisiana’s “election calendar is one of the latest in the nation” and that “the election deadlines that actually impact voters do not occur until October 2022.” “A stay increases the risk that Plaintiffs do not have an opportunity to vote under a nondilutive congressional map until 2024, almost halfway through this census cycle,” she wrote. “As we’ve said from the beginning, a map that does not have a second majority Black district violates the law,” said Jared Evans of the NAACP Legal Defense Fund. Ardoin’s request for a stay noted that “a three-judge district court in Alabama issued an injunction similar to this Court’s, and the Supreme Court stayed that injunction pending appeal.”

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History of this topic

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 …

4 months, 3 weeks ago

Voting group asks S. Carolina court to order redraw of US House districts that lean too Republican

Associated Press

COLUMBIA, S.C. — A group that works to protect and expand voting rights is asking South Carolina’s highest court to order lawmakers to redraw the state’s U.S. House districts because they lean too far Republican. South Carolina’s congressional map was upheld two months ago in a 6-3 U.S. Supreme Court decision that said the state General Assembly did not use …

5 months, 1 week ago

Mississippi must move quickly on a court-ordered redistricting, say voting rights attorneys

Associated Press

— Mississippi should work quickly to fulfill the court-ordered redrawing of some legislative districts to ensure more equitable representation for Black residents, attorneys for voting rights groups said in a new court filing Friday. The attorneys also said it’s important to hold special elections in the reconfigured state House and Senate districts on Nov. 5 — the same day as …

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. …

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 …

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 …

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 …

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 …

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 …

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 …

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 …

8 months, 3 weeks ago

South Carolina to hold 2024 congressional elections with map previously ruled unconstitutional

Associated Press

COLUMBIA, S.C. — A federal court on Thursday ruled that this year’s congressional elections in South Carolina will be held under a map that it had already deemed unconstitutional and discriminatory against Black voters, with time running out ahead of voting deadlines and a lack of a decision on the case by the Supreme Court. After South Carolina’s Legislature, which …

9 months, 4 weeks ago

Attorneys argue over whether Mississippi legislative maps dilute Black voting power

Associated Press

— Mississippi legislators diluted the power of Black voters by drawing too few majority-Black state House and Senate districts after the most recent Census, an attorney representing the NAACP and several residents told three federal judges Monday. But during opening arguments in a trial of the redistricting case, an attorney representing state officials told the judges that race was not …

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 …

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 …

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. …

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 …

11 months, 1 week ago

Proposed Louisiana congressional map, with second majority-Black district, advances

Associated Press

— A proposed Louisiana congressional map with a second majority-Black district, which could deliver another U.S. House seat to Democrats, received bipartisan support and advanced through a legislative committee Tuesday. GOP state Rep. Glen Womack, who filed the legislation, said that race was not the “predominate factor” in deciding where the new boundaries would lie, but rather “politics drove this …

11 months, 1 week ago

Louisiana's special session kicks off Monday. Here's a look at what may be discussed

Hindustan Times

Louisiana's newly inaugurated Legislature is set to convene for an eight-day special session Monday during which lawmakers will discuss items that could impact how the state conducts elections. Lawmakers also may explore new state Supreme Court districts and moving away from the state’s unique “jungle primary” system. Louisiana’s current GOP-drawn map, which was used in the November congressional election, has …

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, …

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 …

1 year ago

THINGS TO KNOW: Deadline looms for new map in embattled North Dakota redistricting lawsuit

Associated Press

BISMARCK, N.D. — The clock is running out on a Friday deadline for North Dakota’s Republican-controlled Legislature to draw new legislative boundaries compliant with the Voting Rights Act for two Native American tribes who successfully sued for new lines. A federal judge last month ruled that the state’s 2021 redistricting map violates the landmark 1965 civil rights law in diluting …

1 year ago

Louisiana granted extra time to draw new congressional map that complies with Voting Rights Act

Associated Press

— Louisiana lawmakers now have until the end of January to draw and pass new congressional boundaries to replace a current map that a federal judge said violates the Voting Rights Act by diluting the power of the state’s Black voters. Baton Rouge-based U.S. District Judge Shelly Dick issued a two-week extension Thursday afternoon, giving lawmakers extra time to construct …

1 year ago

Appeals court takes DeSantis’ side in challenge to a map that helped unseat a Black congressman

Associated Press

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — The Florida Legislature didn’t violate the state constitution when it approved congressional maps pushed by Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis that helped the GOP replace a Black Democratic representative with a white conservative, an appeals court ruled Friday. The 1st District Court of Appeal reversed a lower court’s ruling that the map that rewrote U.S. Rep. Alan Lawson’s …

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 …

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 …

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 …

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 …

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 …

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 …

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 …

1 year, 2 months ago

The Supreme Court will let Alabama’s congressional map be redrawn to better represent Black voters

Associated Press

WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Tuesday allowed the drawing of a new Alabama congressional map with greater representation for Black voters to proceed. Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall struck a defiant pose even as he acknowledged a court-drawn map will be “imposed” on the state for use in next year’s elections. Allen’s three proposals would alter the boundaries of …

1 year, 2 months ago

Supreme Court rejects Alabama's defiance in voting case

NPR

Supreme Court rejects Alabama's defiance in voting case Enlarge this image toggle caption Al Drago/Getty Images Al Drago/Getty Images The U.S. Supreme Court refused on Tuesday to block enforcement of an Alabama voting rights decision that the high court issued just months ago. In June, the court ruled that Alabama's Republican-drawn congressional map violated the Voting Rights Act because, in …

1 year, 3 months ago

Supreme Court to decide whether Alabama can postpone drawing new congressional districts

Associated Press

MONTGOMERY, Ala. — The U.S. Supreme Court is expected to soon rule on Alabama’s request to let it keep new GOP-drawn congressional lines in place as it fights a three-judge panel’s plan to create a second majority-Black district, or something close to it, in the Deep South state. The state attorney general and lawyers representing Black voters who challenged the …

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 …

1 year, 3 months ago

Legal fights over voting districts could play role in control of Congress for 2024

Associated Press

Democrats got a potential boost for the 2024 congressional elections as courts in Alabama and Florida ruled recently that Republican-led legislatures had unfairly diluted the voting power of Black residents. Another trial alleging racial violations in voting districts got underway Tuesday in Georgia, where Democrats also hope to make gains, while voting rights advocates in Ohio decided to drop a …

1 year, 3 months ago

Judges reject Alabama’s congressional lines, will draw new districts to increase Black voting power

Associated Press

MONTGOMERY, Ala. — Federal judges said Tuesday that they will draft new congressional lines for Alabama after lawmakers refused to create a second district where Black voters at least came close to comprising a majority, as suggested by the court. In blocking the newly drawn congressional map, the three-judge panel wrote that they are “deeply troubled” that Alabama lawmakers flouted …

1 year, 4 months ago

Deal over Florida’s redistricting plan could lead to restoration of Black-dominant district

Associated Press

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Voting rights groups that sued state officials over a Florida redistricting plan championed by Gov. The agreement reached late last week opens the possibility that the seat will be restored to a district dominated by Black voters, depending on how a state judge rules and whether the judge’s decision survives rounds of appeals all the way to …

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 …

1 year, 5 months ago

Alabama GOP accused of ripping off Black voters with new congressional map

Raw Story

Republicans in Alabama have passed a new congressional map that is reportedly being criticized for defying U.S. Supreme Court precedent created to protect minority voters. "Civil rights groups have already vowed to challenge the new map in court, a month after the Supreme Court ruled that the state's previous district lines marginalized the state's sizable Black population in violation of …

1 year, 5 months ago

After court ruling, Alabama GOP criticized for rejecting 2nd majority-Black congressional district

Associated Press

MONTGOMERY, Ala. — Alabama Republicans on Tuesday advanced proposals to boost the number of Black voters in one of the state’s seven congressional districts, but critics said the plans flout a court order to create a second majority-Black district or something close to it. Republican-controlled legislative committees on Tuesday voted down proposals to create a second majority-Black district and advanced …

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 …

1 year, 5 months ago

Alabama Republicans reject call for 2nd majority Black district, despite Supreme Court ruling

Associated Press

MONTGOMERY, Ala. — Alabama Republicans, under orders of the U.S. Supreme Court to redraw congressional districts to give minority voters a greater voice in elections, rejected calls Monday to craft a second majority-Black district and proposed a map that could test what is required by the judges’ directive. In a state where more than one in four residents is Black, …

1 year, 5 months ago

Alabama rushes to adopt new congressional map amid disagreement on what district should look like

Associated Press

MONTGOMERY, Ala. — Federal judges that ordered Alabama to draw new congressional lines said the state should have a second district where Black voters are the majority “or something quite close to it” and have an opportunity to elect a representative of their choice. The directive comes after a surprise U.S. Supreme Court ruling that affirmed the lower court’s ruling …

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 …

1 year, 6 months ago

New voting districts could change again in some states before the 2024 elections

Associated Press

The 2022 elections marked the first using new voting districts drawn from updated census data. RACE IN REDISTRICTING The U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday upheld a lower court ruling that Alabama’s congressional districts likely violated the federal Voting Rights Act by diluting the political power of Black voters. It ordered a lower court to impose new U.S. House and state …

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 …

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 …

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 …

1 year, 6 months ago

US Supreme Court rules in favour of Alabama Black voters

Al Jazeera

The conservative-dominated United States Supreme Court, in a surprise ruling, has sided with Black voters who alleged a Republican-drawn districting map in the state of Alabama was discriminatory. In a 5-4 ruling, the court said that the congressional map — which had only one majority Black congressional district out of seven, in a state where more than one in four …

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