A federal judge has granted a preliminary injunction against the re-drawn Congressional districts passed by the legislature.
Every 10 years, political districts must be redrawn to reflect any changes in population.
After the state legislature redrew the state's six Congressional districts, a group of civil rights groups filed suit and asked the court to do what they believe the math requires: create a second majority-Black district.
As reported in detail by our media partners at The Advocate, the suit accuses the state Legislature of illegally diluted the voting power of Black residents by leaving the state with just one Black-majority district even though two out of every six residents of Louisiana is Black.
On Monday U.S. District Judge Shelly Dick granted a preliminary injunction that prevents state election officials from conducting any elections using the Legislature's districts.
In her ruling, Dick directs the legislature to "enact a new map that is compliant with the Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act."
The judge ordered legislators to adopt a compliant plan by June 20, 2022.
According to the Associated Press, State officials swiftly filed a notice of appeal. The district map was drawn up in a special session earlier this year by the Republican-dominated Legislature. Democratic Gov. John Bel Edwards vetoed the maps but his veto was overridden.
