After a court fight, Louisiana's new congressional map boosts Black political power

BATON ROUGE, La. — Louisiana has a new congressional map, with a second majority-Black district, after Republican Gov. Jeff Landry signed it into law on Monday.

The new map is a win for Black voters and likely brings an end to the state's long-running legal battle over redistricting. It could also see Democrats gain another seat in Congress.

Redistricting the map was the focus of a week-long special session called by Landry on his first day in office. A federal court had given Louisiana's legislature until Jan. 30 to redraw its map in compliance with the federal Voting Rights Act, forcing lawmakers to add a second majority-Black district.

Louisiana's earlier map was one of several across the country that had been challenged in court for allegedly diluting Black voting power, leading to a political battle over the districts that has lasted for almost two years.

A federal judge will need to sign off on Louisiana's new map.

In an address to lawmakers at the start of the special session, Landry urged them to put an end to that battle and pass a congressional map with two majority-Black districts.

"These maps will satisfy the court and ensure that the congressional districts of our state are made right here in this legislature and not by some heavy-handed federal judge," he said.

In 2022, Louisiana lawmakers passed a map with one majority-Black district out of six, even though Black residents make up about a third of the state's population.

A group of Black voters, concerned the map did not offer Black Louisianans fair representation, challenged the map in court.

Landry, who was then Louisiana's attorney general, tried to end that litigation and preserve the 2022 map. But as governor, at the start of last week's special