Supreme Court Blocks Majority-Black Louisiana US House District

A divided US Supreme Court reinstated a Republican-drawn congressional map in Louisiana for this year’s election, blocking a trial judge’s order that required a second majority-Black voting district.

Over the dissents of the three liberal justices, the court granted a request by state officials who sought intervention on an emergency basis. The majority gave no explanation.

US District Judge Shelly Dick said the federal Voting Rights Act required Louisiana, which is 33% Black and has six congressional districts, to create a second majority-Black district for the US House. Dick said in her June 6 order that the state, which doesn’t hold a primary, “has sufficient time to implement a new congressional map without the risk of chaos.”

The Supreme Court indicated the final resolution of the case will depend on a similar Alabama clash the justices will consider when their new term starts in October.

The Supreme Court issued a similar stay order in the Alabama case in February, ensuring the state will use a map with only one majority-Black district for the 2022 election. Two members of the majority -- Alito and Justice Brett Kavanaugh -- said at the time it was too close to the election to force a state to change its election rules.

A federal appeals court had been scheduled to hear arguments in the Louisiana case July 8.

The Supreme Court case is Ardoin v. Robinson, 21A814,

(Updates with additional details on order in third paragraph.)

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Greg Stohr in Washington at gstohr@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story:
Elizabeth Wasserman at ewasserman2@bloomberg.net

Greg Stohr

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