Louisiana lawmakers advance 5-1 House map after SCOTUS ruling

Louisiana lawmakers on Wednesday morning approved a proposed slate of  congressional district maps featuring five Republican-leaning seats and one Democratic-leaning district.

The maps come in the wake of a Supreme Court ruling that struck down Louisiana's slate of maps, finding that a black-majority district created due to a court order was an unconstitutional racial gerrymander. The court further narrowed Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act to disallow race-based districts.

The ruling triggered a wave of redraws across the South, including the Louisiana effort, which on Wednesday saw the state Senate and Government Affairs Committee approve the new map in a 4-3 vote, The Hill reported.

The decision sends the map to the state legislature for a full vote, where it is expected to pass. The additional Republican-leaning district from the state's delegation is expected to prove critical in the battle for the House in November.

Other states, including Missouri, Florida, Texas, Alabama, and Tennesee, have either approved new maps or begun the same process.

Ben Whedon is the Chief Political Correspondent at Just the News. Follow him on X.