Supreme Court 6-3 Strikes Louisiana Racial Gerrymander

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled 6-3 on Wednesday that Louisiana's congressional district map, redrawn in 2024 to include a second majority-Black district, constitutes an unconstitutional racial gerrymander. The decision in Louisiana v. Callais requires the state to redraw its six congressional districts ahead of future elections.

The case stemmed from redistricting after the 2020 census. Louisiana's initial map featured one majority-Black district out of six, despite Black residents comprising about one-third of the state's population. A federal district court, led by Chief Judge Shelly Dick, found that map violated Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act, which prohibits voting practices that dilute minority voting power. The state then enacted a new map, known as SB 8, creating a second majority-Black district represented by Democrat Cleo Fields. That district stretches more than 200 miles in a serpentine shape linking Shreveport, Alexandria, Lafayette and Baton Rouge, as Chief Justice John Roberts noted during oral arguments.

Non-Black voters challenged the revised map, arguing it violated the 14th and 15th Amendments by making race the predominant factor in drawing lines. The 5th...