Court blocks Louisiana's congressional map with a second majority-Black district

A federal court on Tuesday blocked Louisiana from using a congressional map signed into law this year that had been redrawn to include a second majority-Black district.

In a 2-1 vote, the three-judge panel of the U.S. District Court in Monroe, Louisiana, found that Senate Bill 8, which provided for the redistricting of congressional districts in the state, violated a clause in the 14th Amendment that ensures equal protection under the Constitution.

The case is likely to end up before the Supreme Court in another test of the Voting Rights Act.

"Having considered the testimony and evidence at trial, the arguments of counsel, and the applicable law, we conclude that District 6 of SB8 violates the Equal Protection Clause," District Judges Robert R. Summerhays and David C. Joseph, both appointees of former President Donald Trump, wrote in the court's opinion.

The judges said the state was not to use the map "in any future elections."

A hearing was set for May 6 to discuss next steps.

In a statement, Paul Hurd, an attorney for the voters opposing the map, expressed gratitude "that the Court ruled in favor of the twelve courageous Plaintiffs who challenged the new districting plan."

In their lawsuit challenging the redistricting map, the plaintiffs argued that "the State engaged in textbook racial gerrymandering" and that it violated civil rights protections under the 14th and 15th amendments when it drew a second majority-Black district to comply with an earlier court order.

The Louisiana secretary of state's office has set May 15 as the deadline for the state’s congressional map to be finalized for use in this year’s elections.

It declined to comment on Tuesday's ruling.

The map was redrawn, and Gov. Jeff Landry, a