U.S. Supreme Court Voids Louisiana’s Majority-Black District, Weakening Voting Rights Act

The U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday issued a 6–3 decision that sharply weakened a key provision of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 by ruling that Louisiana’s congressional map was an “unconstitutional racial gerrymander.”

“SCOTUS voids majority Black congressional district in Louisiana, opening door for more redistricting WASHINGTON -- The Supreme Court on Wednesday hollowed out a landmark Civil Rights-era law that has increased minority representation in Congress and elsewhere, striking down a majority Black congressional district in Louisiana and opening the door for more redistricting across the country that could aid Republican efforts to control the House”

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In the case examined by the Court, the map had created a second majority-Black district in Louisiana because of a Voting Rights Act challenge, but the justices said that amounted to an unconstitutional use of race.

ABC7 Los Angeles

NBC News reported that the justices told states they can “almost never consider race when they draw maps to comply with Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act,” and it said Louisiana will need to redraw its map.

AP News said the court’s conservative majority found that the Louisiana district represented by Democrat Cleo Fields relied too heavily on race, and it quoted Justice Samuel Alito writing, “That map is an unconstitutional gerrymander.”

The decision’s immediate political effects were framed by multiple outlets as a potential opening for Republican gains in the U.S. House, with CNN describing that the ruling “will bring about major changes to political representation at all levels of government in future elections, starting in earnest in 2028.”

The same CNN account said the ruling returns the case to the lower court for more proceedings but “without any instructions about whether the map should be withdrawn for the midterms,” and it noted the opinion did not mention a legal doctrine known as Purcell.

In Louisiana, AP News said Chief Justice John Roberts described the 6th Congressional District as a “snake” stretching more than 200 miles (320 kilometers) to link parts of Shreveport, Alexandria, Lafayette and Baton Rouge.

Several outlets described the ruling as a reset of how courts evaluate Voting Rights Act redistricting claims, with the practical effect being to make it harder to challenge maps on the basis of race.

CNN said the opinion “had the effect of drastically changing a legal test the Supreme Court put forward 40 years ago for how courts should approach Voting Rights Act redistricting cases,” and it said Alito “played down how much he was reworking that test.”

Anadolu Ajansı

NBC News said Alito wrote that while there may be “extreme situations” where the use of race can be justified, “no such conditions existed in the Louisiana case,” and it quoted the Court’s view that allowing race to play any part in government decision-making is a departure from the constitutional rule that applies in almost any other context.

Politico described the decision as leaving the Voting Rights Act “on the books — but in name only,” and it said Justice Elena Kagan wrote that the ruling marks the “latest chapter in the majority’s now-completed demolition” of the law.

Politico also said the core of the Callais ruling is Section 2, and it described the new standard as requiring evidence of discriminatory intent or “a strong inference that the State intentionally drew its districts to afford minority voters less opportunity because of their race.”

The Hill similarly said Alito called Louisiana’s congressional lines “an unconstitutional gerrymander” and “curtailed Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act,” while also quoting Decision Desk HQ’s Chief Elections Analyst Geoffrey Skelley explaining that election administration “is not just like a thing you turn on and off.”

NBC News added that Alito justified the change of course by highlighting “social change” in the South and citing the Court’s 2019 decision that paved the way to “unfettered partisan gerrymandering.”

AP News said it was unclear how much of Section 2 “remains,” and it quoted Alito that Section 2 is effectively limited to instances of intentional discrimination, a very high standard.

In the dissent, Kagan said the “consequences are likely to be far-reaching and grave” and that the ruling effectively “renders Section 2 all but a dead letter,” according to NBC News.

Democratic leaders and civil-rights advocates reacted to the ruling as a major setback for minority voting rights and pledged to fight back through legal and political measures.

“Supreme Court weakens a landmark Civil Rights-era law and aids GOP efforts to control the House Supreme Court weakens a landmark Civil Rights-era law and aids GOP efforts to control the House WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court on Wednesday hollowed out a landmark Civil Rights-era law that has increased minority representation in Congress and elsewhere, striking down a majority Black congressional district in Louisiana and opening the door for more redistricting across the country that could aid Republican efforts to control the House”

AP News

CNN reported that in a dissent joined by the court’s two other Democratic appointees, Justice Elena Kagan said “the Court’s decision will set back the foundational right Congress granted of racial equality in electoral opportunity.”

Anadolu Ajansı quoted U.S. Senate minority leader Chuck Schumer saying the decision “demolishes” Section 2, calling it “a demolition of Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act,” and warning it “opens the floodgates for states across the South to redraw their congressional districts and make voters of color essentially invisible in our democracy.”

CNBC said House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., told reporters at a Congressional Black Caucus press conference that “Today’s decision by this illegitimate Supreme Court majority strikes a blow against the Voting Rights Act and is designed to undermine the ability of communities of color all over this country to elect their candidate of choice,” adding, “But we're not here to step back, we're here to fight back.”

CNBC also quoted CBC Chair Yvette Clarke saying, “The Congressional Black Caucus is prepared to take any measure necessary to protect Black voters in this country,” and it said Clarke called for immediate passage of the John R. Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act.

The Hill described Senate Democrats launching a task force to fight back, and CNBC said the task force would include former Attorney General Eric Holder and Democratic election lawyer Marc Elias.

In a statement announcing the task force, Schumer said, “The right to vote is the foundation of our democracy — and right now, that foundation is under attack,” according to CNBC.

Politico and NBC News both included quotes from voting-rights advocates characterizing the ruling as effectively gutting the law, with Politico quoting NAACP general counsel Kristen Clarke saying, “Very little remains,” and NBC News quoting Derrick Johnson, president of the NAACP, saying, “The Supreme Court betrayed Black voters, they betrayed America, and they betrayed our democracy.”

Republicans and allies of President Donald Trump portrayed the ruling as a victory for equal protection and constitutional limits on race in mapmaking, while also signaling that they expect redistricting efforts to follow.

Anadolu Ajansı said the ruling delivered a victory to Louisiana Republicans and allies of President Donald Trump, and it described Schumer’s accusation that the court was aligned with Trump’s Make America Great Again (MAGA) movement.

CNBC

CNBC quoted National Republican Congressional Committee Chair Rep. Richard Hudson, R-NC., saying, “Today's decision is a victory for the Constitution and the principle that every American citizen is equal under the law,” and it added that “The Supreme Court made clear that our elections should be decided by voters, not engineered through unconstitutional mandates.”

CNBC also quoted Hudson continuing, “This ruling restores fairness, strengthens confidence in our elections and ensures every voter is treated equally under the law,” and it said the decision could precipitate the elimination of other majority-Black districts represented by Democrats elsewhere.

NBC News reported that President Donald Trump praised the ruling on Truth Social, calling it “a BIG WIN for Equal Protection under the Law,” and it quoted Trump thanking “brilliant Justice Samuel Alito for authoring this important and appropriate Opinion.”

NBC News also said Louisiana’s Republican attorney general, Liz Murrill, and the White House celebrated the decision, with Murrill calling it “seismic,” and it quoted her statement that it is “gratifying that the Supreme Court has finally vindicated our original position.”

CNN reported that in a statement Wednesday, state Attorney General Liz Murrill said she would work with the state’s legislature and Gov. Jeff Landry on how to proceed with a “constitutionally compliant map” moving forward.

CNN also said that Republican officials who control state government in Louisiana had not yet indicated how they will respond, and it described how any redistricting action in Louisiana would disrupt the state’s May 16 primary.

The ruling’s timing and the practical constraints of election administration became a central theme across outlets, with multiple reports focusing on how quickly states could redraw maps before the November midterms.

“Congressional Democrats on Wednesday vowed to fight with what limited power they have from the minority in the House and the Senate against the Supreme Court's decision to strike down a voting map in Louisiana”

CNBC

CNN said the decision’s impact on the 2026 midterm elections could be limited because of “practical and legal hurdles” to redrawing legislative plans at this point in the electoral cycle, while also saying the ruling could set off an effort in several states to create new maps ahead of November.

CNN

The Hill described the “national redistricting war” as reigniting and quoted Geoffrey Skelley saying, “Election administration is not just like a thing you turn on and off,” and it added that if districts were redrawn, it would “reset that entire process and obviously delay the primary.”

The Hill also said the Supreme Court’s decision raised questions about whether states will be allowed to redistrict before the November general election, while noting that the Court “didn’t provide any guidance” in Wednesday’s decision.

NBC News said Louisiana’s primary is May 16, “just two weeks away,” and it described that there is “little time this year with primaries underway ahead of November’s midterm congressional elections.”

CNN reported that early voting is slated to start Saturday and that overseas and military ballots already have gone out, and it said Fields and other Democrats argued it already is too late draw new lines.

In Georgia, The Hill said the primary is May 19 and that Skelley suggested it isn’t likely to redraw maps ahead of November, even as Republican leaders called for a special legislative session, including Rick Jackson writing on X that “redrawing the maps must be added to the agenda.”

The Hill also reported that Sen. Marsha Blackburn urged lawmakers in Tennessee to draw another Republican seat in response to the court’s decision, and it said Tennessee holds its primary on Aug. 6.

Looking ahead, CNN said the ruling will start “in earnest in 2028,” while AP News said the effect may be felt more strongly in 2028 because most filing deadlines for this year’s congressional races have passed.