Louisiana Faces Election Shake-Up After Supreme Court Weakens Voting Rights Act

Louisiana has suspended its May congressional primaries after the U.S. Supreme Court struck down the state's majority-Black congressional district, forcing officials to halt elections that were days away from early voting.

Gov. Jeff Landry and Attorney General Liz Murrill said Thursday that the state can no longer move forward under its current congressional map after the Supreme Court's 6-3 ruling in Louisiana v. Callais. The primaries had been scheduled for May 16, with early voting expected to begin Saturday, according to The Associated Press.

In a joint statement, Landry and Murrill said the ruling barred Louisiana from conducting the elections under the existing boundaries and that state officials were working with the Legislature and Secretary of State's office on a new path forward.

The decision immediately upended the state's election calendar and opened the door for Louisiana lawmakers to redraw the state's six U.S. House districts before the November midterms. Reuters reported that Landry planned to suspend the May 16 primaries to give lawmakers time to draft a new map.

The Supreme Court ruling struck down a congressional map that included a second majority-Black district in Louisiana, where Black residents make up roughly one-third of the population. The map had been adopted after years of litigation over whether the state had diluted Black voting power by packing many Black voters into a single district.

Writing for the conservative majority, Justice Samuel Alito said Louisiana's use of race in drawing the district could not be justified by compliance with Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act. The court's liberal justices dissented, warning that the decision severely weakens one of the central tools used to challenge discriminatory voting maps.

The ruling is expected to have consequences beyond Louisiana. The decision could encourage more redistricting across the country before the 2026 midterms, particularly in states where majority-minority districts were drawn or defended under the Voting Rights Act.

President Donald Trump praised the decision, telling reporters, "I love it," after learning of the ruling, Reuters reported. He added that he believed Republican-led states would now want to reconfigure their voting maps.

Democrats and civil rights advocates condemned the ruling.

Louisiana's election delay now creates a compressed timeline for lawmakers, election officials and candidates. The state must determine whether to call a special legislative session, approve a new congressional map and reset primary dates with enough time for ballots, candidate filings and voter notification.

The dispute also carries national stakes. Republicans hold a narrow House majority, and even one or two additional seats from Louisiana could affect control of Congress. Washington Post reporting cited by Reuters said Louisiana's delayed calendar may give the state more room than others to redraw districts before voters cast ballots. For voters, the immediate result is uncertainty.