Louisiana’s newly inaugurated Legislature will convene Monday for an eight-day special session in which lawmakers will discuss topics that could impact how the state runs elections.
The focus of the session will be on redrawing Louisiana’s congressional map after a federal judge ruled that the current boundaries violate the Voting Rights Act. Lawmakers can also explore new state Supreme Court districts and move away from the state’s unique “jungle primary” system. Republican Gov. Jeff Landry has identified 14 topics for the Legislature to discuss.
The hearing starts on Monday at 4 p.m. Landry, who called the special session just hours after taking office, is expected to address the Legislature shortly after they have their say.
Here we take a closer look at some of the topics under discussion:
Lawmakers will get a chance to draw and replace the state’s current congressional map, which a federal judge says dilutes the power of black voters.
The current Republican Party-drawn map of Louisiana, which was used in November’s congressional elections, has white majorities in five of six counties, despite Black people making up a third of the state’s population. Another majority-black district could provide a second congressional seat for Democrats in the red state.
Democrats argue the map discriminates against black voters and that there should be two majority-minority districts. Republicans say the map is fair and argue the state’s black population is too spread out to be unified into a second majority-black district.
Baton Rouge-based U.S. District Judge Shelly Dick agreed with civil rights groups’ arguments and struck down Louisiana’s map in June for violating the Voting Rights Act.
Officials have until Jan. 30 to cross new congressional boundaries with a second majority-minority district. If they don’t meet the deadline, a district court will hold a trial and “decide on a plan for the 2024 election,” according to a court order from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth District in November.
In December, a majority of Louisiana Supreme Court justices sent a letter to Landry asking lawmakers to also consider redrawing the court’s districts. They said it had been 25 years since their districts were redrawn and called for a second majority district, WDSU. TV reported.
Landry supports a second majority-black district among the Supreme Court’s seven seats, The Times-Picayune/The New Orleans Advocate reported.
Some proposed limits are already on the table, with one plan to expand the number of judges from seven to nine, the lawyer reported.
In a decades-old debate, lawmakers could look to overhaul Louisiana’s unique open “jungle primary” system, which would shift the state toward a closed primary system.
Opponents argue the change would lead to a host of problems, from logistics and costs to alienating political independents. Supporters of a closed primary say the current system disadvantages the newest members of Louisiana’s congressional delegation because the runoff election won’t take place until December, a month after almost every other state has settled its seats.
In a ‘jungle primary’ or ‘majority vote primary’ all candidates, regardless of party, face each other on the same ballot paper. If no candidate reaches 50% in the primaries, the top two voters will advance to a direct runoff, which could ultimately pit two Republicans or two Democrats against each other.
