Nearly two years after a federal court ruled that the Louisiana electoral map resulted in the black vote is underrepresented, today the state runs the risk of going to the polls for the second time – in Presidential elections from November – with a map that violates the Voting Rights Act.
Responsive in the decision of the Federal Court, the state created a second majority African-American district on the state’s electoral map with a total of 6 regions. But another federal court decided that the addition of this second black-majority district it is unconstitutional.
The new decision, issued last Tuesday by two judges appointed by Donald Trump, leaves the state without a new map six months before the elections, explains CNN.
The legal dispute could determine control of the Chamber
And that’s important for the country as a whole, as the legal battle could affect who ends up controlling the House of Representatives in the second year, as areas with a majority of African Americans tend to elect Democratic legislators.
Some Louisiana officials say the legal battle puts them in a difficult position, given that they have the requirements of the Voting Rights Act on one hand and the limits set by the Constitution on the other. They therefore emphasize that the Supreme Court must have the final say in clarifying the complex legal landscape.
Black voters who sued the state over the 5-1 redistricting map secured a ruling in their favor in June 2022. Judge Shelly Dick – appointed by Barack Obama – ruled that the state’s map violated the Human Rights Rights Act. Vote and essentially asked for the map to be redrawn so that their districts were 4-2.
The appeal of white people
But a group of 12 white voters sued the new map, arguing that it violates their “personal dignity” since the two districts listed as having a majority of black voters “racially stigmatize,” “reinforce racist stereotypes” and “marginalize them.” us racially.” “. The court justified them. And now there are two conflicting court decisions and someone will have to decide which one prevails.