Gov. Jeff Landry Suspends Louisiana U.S. House Primaries After Supreme Court Ruling

Louisiana suspended its U.S. House primaries after a U.S. Supreme Court ruling struck down the state’s existing congressional map, with Gov. Jeff Landry and Attorney General Liz Murrill saying the decision effectively prohibited the state from carrying out the primaries under the current districts.

“Louisiana congressional primaries are suspended as a result of the Supreme Court’s ruling Louisiana congressional primaries are suspended as a result of the Supreme Court’s ruling BATON ROUGE, La”

Associated Press

The Louisiana House primaries were scheduled for May 16, and early voting had been set to begin Saturday, but the state’s top elected officials announced Thursday that the primaries “won’t be going forward as scheduled in May.”

Associated Press

In a joint statement posted to social media, Landry and Murrill said, “The State is currently enjoined from carrying out congressional elections under the current map,” and they added, “We are working together with the Legislature and the Secretary of State’s office to develop a path forward.”

The Louisiana Illuminator reported that Landry suspended the May 16 U.S. House primary elections and said, “Allowing elections to proceed under an unconstitutional map would undermine the integrity of our system and violate the rights of our voters.”

NBC News likewise described the move as a delay of the May 16 House primaries, while Secretary of State Nancy Landry said other races would proceed as scheduled.

CNN reported that “the House races will remain on the May 16 ballot, but no votes cast in those races will count,” and NPR similarly said the House races would remain on voters’ ballots while “any votes cast in those races will not be counted.”

Across the coverage, Louisiana officials tied the suspension to the Supreme Court’s ruling and to the state’s legal posture that it was “enjoined” from using the invalidated map.

The Office of Governor Jeff Landry (.gov) said the executive order suspended “closed party primary elections only for offices of U.S. Representative” and described the ruling as finding Louisiana’s current congressional district map “to be an unconstitutional gerrymander.”

CNN

The governor’s office said the decision “effectively reinstates a lower court injunction prohibiting the state from conducting congressional elections under the invalidated map,” and it specified that the closed party primary elections “previously scheduled for May 16, 2026, and the second primary set for June 27, 2026, are suspended.”

The Louisiana Illuminator reported that Landry suspended just the U.S. House elections while “Contests for U.S. Senate, Louisiana Supreme Court, Public Service Commission, Board of Elementary and Secondary Education and five constitutional amendments will continue on May 16 as scheduled.”

It also said Secretary of State Nancy Landry stated that the “U.S. House races will remain on voters’ ballots, but any votes cast in those races will not be counted.”

Politico described the executive order as delaying the elections until July 15 at the earliest, and it quoted Landry’s statement that the order would “ensure we uphold the rule of law while giving the Legislature the time it needs to pass a fair and lawful congressional map.”

Democrats and legal experts criticized the suspension as disruptive and potentially unconstitutional, while Republicans defended it as required by the Supreme Court’s ruling.

Louisiana state Sen. Royce Duplessis, a Democrat who represents the New Orleans area, warned, “This is going to cause mass confusion among voters — Democrats, Republicans, white, Black, everybody,” and he added, “What they’re effectively doing is changing the rules of the game in the middle of the game. It’s rigging the system.”

Ruth Greenwood, director of the Election Law Clinic at Harvard Law School, questioned the legal justification, saying, “The Court’s decision does not halt the election process on its own,” and she also argued that the decision did not itself stop the election process.

State Rep. Kyle Green, chair of the House Democratic caucus, said, “The Court’s decision does not halt the election process on its own,” and he added, “And any attempt to suspend or disrupt an ongoing election at this stage would raise serious constitutional concerns.”

In contrast, House Speaker Mike Johnson said, “The governor has no choice but to suspend” the May 16 primary “because the courts just ruled our map unconstitutional.”

CNN reported that Democratic Rep. Cleo Fields expected a court challenge and said, “People have already voted,” and “Early ballots have been submitted.”

While all the outlets described Louisiana’s House primaries as suspended after the Supreme Court ruling, they differed in what they emphasized about timing, process, and the scope of the change.

Politico specified that Landry issued an executive order Thursday delaying the elections until July 15 at the earliest, while also stating that the state’s Senate primary was unaffected and that early voting was expected to begin Saturday.

Los Angeles Times

NPR and PBS both described the House races as suspended while other primaries continued, but NPR said it was “unclear when the House races will continue,” whereas PBS emphasized that the ruling “effectively prohibits the state from carrying out the primaries under the current districts.”

CNN and NBC News both said the House races would remain on the May 16 ballot but that votes would not count, yet CNN added that overseas ballots had already gone out and that Fields expected a court challenge.

The Louisiana Illuminator provided additional procedural detail, saying the governor “has suspended just the U.S. House elections” and that “By law, the governor was able to move the election only after the secretary of state certified an emergency.”

The Guardian framed the development as part of a broader rush by southern states to redraw districts after the Supreme Court’s Wednesday ruling “severely weakened the landmark Voting Rights Act.”

The sources describe immediate next steps in Louisiana and broader implications for representation and future elections, with multiple outlets linking the House map changes to control of Congress in 2026 and beyond.

NBC News said the delay would give state lawmakers time to redraw congressional maps, and it described the Supreme Court ruling as having “far-reaching consequences for control of Congress in 2026 and beyond.”

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The Office of Governor Jeff Landry (.gov) said the executive order followed certification from the Louisiana Secretary of State that an electoral emergency exists under R.S. 18:401.1, and it stated that “The statute authorizes the governor to suspend or delay elections to protect voter safety, participation, and the integrity of the process.”

The Louisiana Illuminator reported that Landry’s order pushes the primary elections to July 15 unless the Legislature determines a new date, and it said the compressed timeline could make a closed primary untenable.

PBS and NBC News both described Louisiana’s current delegation as “four Republicans and two Democrats,” and they said a revised map could give Republicans a chance to pick up at least one more seat in the November midterm elections.

The Guardian broadened the stakes by describing other states’ moves after the Supreme Court ruling and quoting Charles Taylor saying, “Too often in this country, Black voters bear the brunt of the political theater.”