By Richard Searles, Contributor to the Journal
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday ruled 6-3 that Louisiana’s congressional district map is an unconstitutional racial gerrymander, a decision that significantly narrows the application of the Voting Rights Act in future redistricting challenges.
The case, Louisiana v. Callais, No. 24-109, was argued Oct. 15, 2025, and decided April 29, 2026. It centered on whether Louisiana’s redrawn congressional map, known as SB8, violated the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.
Justice Samuel Alito wrote the majority opinion for the six-justice court, concluding that Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act did not require Louisiana to create an additional majority-Black district. Because no such requirement existed, the state had no compelling interest to justify the use of race in drawing the map, making it an unconstitutional racial gerrymander.
The case has its origins in 2022, when a federal judge found Louisiana’s original congressional map likely violated Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act because it did not include a second majority-Black district. The state subsequently drew a new map, SB8, containing such a district. That map was then challenged by a separate group of voters as a racial gerrymander, and a three-judge federal court agreed, finding SB8 violated the Fourteenth Amendment’s Equal Protection Clause.
The majority held that states can almost never consider race when drawing maps to comply with Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act, which was enacted to protect minority voters who historically faced discrimination in elections.
The ruling came as the court did not specify what should happen next, even as replacing Louisiana’s map before the 2026 midterms presents a logistical challenge. Louisiana’s primary election is scheduled for May 16, two weeks away.
Longer term, the ruling could lead to fewer majority-minority districts in Congress and in state and local governments, potentially reducing the number of non-white elected officials.
The decision is expected to benefit Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis as his legislature considers a new map that would add additional Republican congressional seats. It appears unlikely that other states will pursue major map changes before the 2026 midterms, though significant redistricting changes could follow before the 2028 election, particularly in Southern states such as Georgia and Alabama.
Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Brett Kavanaugh, who joined the court’s three liberal justices in a 2023 ruling that upheld a longstanding interpretation of the Voting Rights Act in an Alabama redistricting case, joined the majority Wednesday without issuing concurring opinions explaining the shift in their positions.
Louisiana has approximately 30% Black residents among its population and currently sends two Black members to Congress among its six-member House delegation.
Source: U.S. Supreme Court opinion, Louisiana v. Callais, No. 24-109 (April 29, 2026); NBC News; CNN.
Photo: Courtesy of Democracy Docket
