Black Voters File SCOTUS Petition Asking For Hearing To Select Louisiana’s New Congressional Map To Proceed

Photos: ACLU\YouTube Screenshots WASHINGTON —Last Friday, plaintiffs in Robinson v. Ardoin, the challenge to Louisiana’s congressional map under Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act, filed an emergency petition to the U.S. Supreme Court asking for the process of selecting a new map to proceed. The motion is in response to a writ of mandamus issued by the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals yesterday, which vacated a remedial hearing set for Oct. 3-5, 2023, during which the district court was set to consider plaintiffs’ proposal for a new map including two majority-Black districts. Plaintiffs argue that the writ was improperly granted and would unfairly risk the timeline to enact a new congressional map with two out of six congressional districts with a majority of Black voters. The map enacted by the Louisiana Legislature only includes one majority-Black district, a violation of the Voting Rights Act according to the preliminary injunction issued by the district court last year. “We are ready to advance a map that marks a new chapter for the state of Louisiana – one that provides a fair opportunity for Black voters to equally participate in the political process,” said LDF redistricting fellow Sara Rohani, “Procedural delays should...