Federal Court Says that Louisiana Congressional Redistricting Plan Violates Section 2 of the VRA

A federal district court in Louisiana granted a preliminary injunction in favor of the plaintiffs who challenged Louisiana’s congressional redistricting plan. The case, brought by a coalition of civil rights groups, is Robinson v. Ardoin. The court concluded that the current plan packs some Black voters into one districts and cracks other Black voters among neighboring districts in violation of section 2 of the Voting Rights Act. The court will give the legislature an opportunity to enact a map that complies with section 2. The court also stayed Louisiana’s nominating petition deadline until July 8.

This is an interesting case and raises a number of important issues including: who counts as Black; the continued vitality of Gingles ; whether there a private right of action under section 2; how much can an illustrative map deviate from a benchmark plan; to what extent is racial bloc voting a function of race or a function of party; Purcell; the relevance of race-blind computer simulations. Stay tuned for the inevitable appeals process. This one seems like it might have a long tail.

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