Louisiana's newly drawn congressional map was struck down by a federal judge on Tuesday, ruling that the new boundaries forming the state's second-majority black district violated the Equal Protection Clause. The court ruled that it amounted to “target gerrymandering.” of the U.S. Constitution.
The 2-1 ruling leaves it unclear which boundaries will be used in the election just six months away, which could play a key role in determining the balance of power in the House.
Critics warned that the decision could have far-reaching implications for voting rights. “The ideological nature of this decision could not be clearer,” said Eric H. Holder Jr., a former U.S. attorney general and current chairman of the National Democratic Redistricting Committee.
Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill (R) indicated Tuesday that the case could proceed to the U.S. Supreme Court. “I have long said that the Supreme Court needs to figure this out,” she wrote. on social media.
The judges have scheduled a hearing for May 6 to discuss next steps. Louisiana's Secretary of State has ordered the congressional map to be completed by May 15th.
The outline of the new districts was announced during a special session of the state Legislature in January. After a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit found that the previous map was highly likely to weaken the voting power of Black residents and violate the Voting Rights Act. Lawmakers had been ordered to draw new boundaries.
But a group of residents in the new congressional district who called themselves “non-African American” voters challenged the map, and the new map was submitted to a separate panel of federal judges. They argued that the lawmakers “segregated voters entirely on the basis of race” and brought together “distant communities in Louisiana” to accomplish that goal.
The new majority-black neighborhood traverses a strip of territory stretching from Baton Rouge, the state capital in Louisiana's toe, to Shreveport in the northwestern corner of the state. Approximately 54 percent of the district's population is black.
In Tuesday's ruling, Judges David C. Joseph and Robert R. Summerhays of the Western District of Louisiana acknowledged that factors other than race were involved in the process, including protecting certain incumbents. Still, they said it's clear that creating a second district with a majority of black voters is lawmakers' top goal.
“The dominant role of race in state decisions is reflected in the statements of legislative decision-makers, the division of cities and parishes along racial lines, the unusual shapes of districts, and the evidence that their contours differ. ” the judges wrote. The district is drawn to absorb enough black neighborhoods to achieve the goal of functioning as a majority black neighborhood. ”
The justices noted that the ruling does not determine “whether it is possible to create a second majority black district in Louisiana” pursuant to the Equal Protection Clause. But they added that the Voting Rights Act “never requires racial preponderance in drawing congressional districts at the expense of traditional redistricting principles.”
In a dissenting opinion, Judge Carl E. Stewart of the Fifth Circuit argued that the challengers had failed to prove that their constitutional rights were being violated.
“The record as a whole shows that the Louisiana Legislature weighed race against a variety of political concerns, including the protection of certain incumbents, and no factor favored one over the other,” he said. ” he wrote.
The ruling is the latest wrinkle in a long-running legal battle over the shape of Louisiana's congressional districts, and other southern states have also been forced out of court to redraw district lines amid accusations of racial discrimination. It was released under duress.
Louisiana was required to redraw its congressional districts to account for population changes after the 2020 census. The state's black population has increased by 3.8 percent over the past 10 years, making up roughly one-third of the state's population, the census found. But maps drawn by the Republican-controlled Congress show that only one of the six congressional districts has a majority black population.
In June 2022, a federal judge found the map to be racially gerrymandered, illegally weakening the electoral power of Black voters. The judge ordered lawmakers to create a separate district that would give black voters the opportunity to elect the candidate of their choice. However, the disputed map was still used in the 2022 election.
Other Southern states are also redrawing their maps following a surprise U.S. Supreme Court decision last year that threw out Alabama's congressional boundaries, saying the justices did not adequately consider the state's black population. It was ordered. The ruling reaffirmed the Voting Rights Act of 1965, which had been curtailed for years by the court's conservative majority.
Critics of Tuesday's ruling argued the impact in Louisiana could extend beyond a single election or partisan divide. Ashley Shelton, who heads the Power Coalition for Equity and Justice, which is part of the challenge to the original 2020 map, said she and others were undaunted.
“We will continue to fight for maps that reflect our communities, honor the promises of the Voting Rights Act, and honor the voices of the thousands of Louisianans who have been involved throughout the redistricting process,” Shelton said. said. We've been clear from day one that we want fair and representative maps. ”
