08/31/2025

Louisiana Asks SCOTUS to Violate the Voting Rights Act

The state wants the court to bar the use of race in redistricting

Louisiana on Wednesday abandoned its defense of a political map that elected two Black members of Congress and instead called on the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) to reject any consideration of race in redistricting in a case that could bring major changes to the Voting Rights Act.

Appealing to a conservative-dominated court that has been skeptical of the use of race, Louisiana is advancing a position that could allow it and other Republican-led states in the South to draw new maps that eliminate virtually all majority Black districts, which have been Democratic strongholds, voting rights experts said.

"If Louisiana's argument prevailed at the Supreme Court, it would almost certainly lead to a whiter and less representative Congress, as well as significantly less minority representation across the country in legislatures, city councils and across other district-based bodies," UCLA law professor Richard Hasen wrote in an email.

Please select this link to read the complete article from The Associated Press.