congressional maps – Protest-packed hearings in Louisiana followed the Supreme Court’s redistricting ruling, with senators weighing four proposals.
Louisiana’s congressional redistricting debate spilled into a protest-packed statehouse session, with lawmakers facing intense public pressure over proposed new congressional maps they say could reshape Black political power in the Pelican State.
Hundreds of people streamed into the Louisiana State Capitol for a marathon of testimony on Friday evening as state legislators considered four separate proposals for new congressional district boundaries.. The session arrived shortly after a U.S.. Supreme Court decision disrupted Louisiana’s plans for remaking its districts. throwing the state’s primary schedule and election process into turmoil.
Lawmakers began the process inside the Senate and Governmental Affairs committee. with the hearing effectively becoming the first major public step in a new round of map-writing after the court struck down a prior map that was intended to create a second Black-majority district.. State leaders have said the updated maps must pass legal scrutiny this time. but the public gallery made clear that residents are looking beyond compliance to the real-world impact of who gets represented.
The committee considered four proposals with different boundary approaches for Louisiana’s six congressional districts.. State Sen.. Ed Price, a Democrat from Gonzales, submitted a map that would allow for two possible Democratic districts.. State Sen.. Jay Morris. a Republican from West Monroe. offered three separate alternatives. each designed to produce either one Democratic-leaning district or no Democratic-leaning districts.
As debates intensified, State Sen.. Jay Morris argued that the court-ordered reset requires lawmakers to produce a map that is constitutional rather than a map built around political outcomes.. “The current maps did not survive a challenge. ” Morris said. adding that legislators are trying to craft a proposal that aligns with the law after the Supreme Court decision.
The urgency in the room was sharpened by the actions of Gov.. Jeff Landry, who suspended Louisiana’s congressional primary on April 30, just two days before absentee voting was set to begin.. The move effectively stopped the House primary from moving forward, while the U.S.. Senate contest continued as a statewide race.. In effect. the court’s ruling reverberated well beyond the courtroom. forcing election logistics and political campaigning into a rapid reset.
The public hearing also reflected broader tensions seen in other states, where redistricting fights have sometimes turned chaotic.. Here. civil rights groups encouraged supporters to show up in large numbers. with requests issued ahead of time to “pack” the hearing room in an effort to persuade lawmakers to pass an approach that would keep two Democratic seats in Louisiana.
Committee chair Caleb Kleinpeter. a Republican from Grosse Tete. repeatedly urged speakers to adhere to decorum and avoid the kind of shouting matches that have erupted in other state legislatures during similar fights.. Still, chants could be heard from the crowd at moments, underscoring how personal and politically charged the debate has become.
U.S.. Rep.. Troy Carter, a Democrat from New Orleans and the state’s fourth Black U.S.. representative since 1877. told legislators they were elected to do the public’s work rather than serve a party agenda or an individual’s preferences.. His presence highlighted the national attention on Louisiana’s mapmaking—especially given the state’s role in shaping Black voting representation following the Supreme Court’s intervention.
Religious leaders and long-time residents brought emotional testimony to the committee. describing how redistricting could shift political power in a way that they warned could roll back gains made after segregation.. Several speakers framed the proposals as a decision about the future of civil rights representation rather than merely a technical boundary adjustment.
Morris said he introduced his three map options—contained in Senate bills 116, 121 and 130—before the U.S.. Supreme Court ruling, and each proposal was crafted to split the six districts evenly in population terms.. He described one option as designed to eliminate Democratic seats. explaining that it produced no potential Democratic majorities in the second district and relied on a registered-voter breakdown in which Democrats held about 49% of the vote share in that district.
That “6-0” concept was met with skepticism from supporters of keeping two Democratic districts.. Morris argued that the map’s approach was the result of boundary choices rather than race-based calculations. saying he asked a demographer to work with him to avoid making race or party the basis for the design and instead focus on traditional boundaries.
In his second proposal. Morris said Democratic voters—and Black voters—would be more intensely concentrated into the second district. citing figures showing Democrats at 61% and Black voters at 60% in that district.. He noted the plan was used in the 2022 elections, positioning it as a tested alternative.
His third map shifted the Democratic-majority focus to the sixth district, which he said would contain 60% registered Democrats.. Morris also argued this option would concentrate Black voters in the sixth district. again citing a 60% figure for Black residents in the district’s population. while leaving Republicans with a slight majority in the remaining five districts.
Morris defended Senate Bill 130 by linking it to Senate Bill 121, arguing that the third map would likely satisfy constitutional requirements because it was similar in structure to the earlier proposal.
Price’s map, introduced as Senate Bill 407, took a different approach.. It splits all six districts roughly equally by population—using a projection of about 776. 292 constituents per future representative—while shifting the Democratic advantage toward the fifth district.. Like the other proposals. Price’s plan generally followed parish lines. though it made deviations in certain areas. including Lafayette. Orleans. Ouachita and Vernon.
The hearing carried historic weight not only because of the constitutional implications, but because of the people present.. The meeting featured all four of Louisiana’s Black U.S.. representatives in one room: current Reps.. Troy Carter and Cleo Fields, both Democrats, alongside former Reps.. William Jefferson and Cedric Richmond.
Former Rep.. William Jefferson, who spoke as the first Black U.S.. representative from Louisiana, delivered remarks at a moment he was flanked by the other Black U.S.. representatives.. Their presence emphasized how directly the state’s mapmaking is tied to national representation. especially in districts that have long served as political centers for New Orleans and other parts of the state.
Carter, Jefferson and Richmond previously represented the second congressional district, which encompasses New Orleans.. Cleo Fields represented the district that the Supreme Court nullified—one that included Shreveport, Baton Rouge and Lafayette.. At Friday’s hearing. Fields supported Price’s map. while also arguing that a better approach would create an equal Democratic-to-Republican split based on population counts.
State Sen.. Sam Jenkins. a Democrat from Shreveport. said it was “unfortunate” that the court’s redistricting decision landed at a moment that. in his view. caused chaos and confusion.. His comments echoed the broader sense among many residents that the timing of the ruling and the rushed need for new maps have left both voters and lawmakers navigating uncertainty.
For Louisiana lawmakers. the practical challenge now is whether any of the proposals can withstand legal review while still reflecting the political and demographic realities residents say matter most.. With the gallery packed and the stakes tied to who advances in upcoming races. the next steps in the committee process will likely determine whether the state’s new map framework stabilizes or renews the kind of conflict that has already marked this redistricting cycle.
Louisiana redistricting congressional maps Supreme Court ruling Jeff Landry Louisiana State Senate Troy Carter Black-majority district