Copyright Baton Rouge Advocate
The Louisiana Legislature concluded business and left the Capitol on Wednesday, and when it next returns, lawmakers could be stepping into a bitter partisan fight over Louisiana’s congressional map. All eyes are now on the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling in Louisiana v. Callais, a potentially watershed voting-rights and redistricting case, which could come as early as this year or as late as next summer. During a special session that ended Wednesday, the GOP-controlled Legislature approved a plan to delay Louisiana’s new closed party primary elections for U.S. House and Senate by one month from April to May. Republican leaders said they want the extra month to see if a Supreme Court decision in the Callais case comes down before Christmas, and if necessary, use that guidance to draw a new congressional map ahead of the spring primary. Democrats said the election date change is a first step toward eliminating one or two of Louisiana’s majority-Black congressional districts, which elected two Democrats. At every turn of the six-day special session, they protested the delay of primary dates, presaging what is likely to be a contentious battle over a new congressional map — but only if the court rules in time. On the final day of the session, a key Republican lawmaker said that, if an opinion doesn’t come before January, discussions could take place about tossing Louisiana’s closed primary and returning to the familiar jungle primary. Rep. Beau Beaullieu, chairman of the committee that handles redistricting and voting matters, said it’s possible someone would propose repealing the spring closed primary in favor of returning to an open primary, which would be held in fall. “If we don’t hear back from the Supreme Court, I think more people are going to be asking that question,” Beaullieu, R-New Iberia, said in an interview, referring to whether lawmakers will begin discussing a return to a fall open primary. But he also said if the Supreme Court doesn’t rule until summer, Louisiana may have to stick with its current congressional map. Supreme Court redistricting decision looms Legal observers across the political spectrum believe the Callais decision could have major consequences for the Voting Rights Act. That Civil Rights Era law aims to prohibit racial discrimination in voting and in redistricting, and for decades it's been the basis for legal challenges that claim that redistricting plans unfairly dilute the voting power of minorities. A Voting Rights Act lawsuit led the Legislature in 2024 to draw the current voting map, in which two of Louisiana’s six congressional districts are majority-Black. Those districts are represented by Congressmen Troy Carter, D-New Orleans, and Cleo Fields, D-Baton Rouge. Louisiana’s population is roughly one-third African-American. A group of White voters sued over the new map, however, arguing their rights were being infringed under the U.S. Constitution, which prohibits racial discrimination in voting. The Supreme Court is now weighing whether the creation of the second majority-Black district under the Voting Rights Act is unconstitutional. “When it comes to doing things that give fair and equitable maps to African Americans, we delay and we kick the can down the road,” Legislative Black Caucus Chair Edmond Jordan, D-Baton Rouge, said Wednesday during debate on the House floor. “When it’s something that has the potential to dilute the African American vote here, we want to rush and anticipate.” Rep. Ed Larvadain III, D-Alexandria, said he expects the Legislature to convene for a special session this winter to quickly draw new maps with little public input once the Supreme Court rules. “The Legislature will intentionally create unfair maps,” he predicted. “There will be no African American representation in Congress.” “This is not right, and this not fair to the African American population,” he added. Larvadain said that, in the midst of the 2026 midterm election cycle, Louisiana delaying the spring primary is also a way to “help President Trump obtain more seats in Congress.” But Beaullieu, a co-author of the legislation, disputed those accusations. “Election dates are not partisan. Election dates do not see color,” he said. “This deals with election dates and nothing else.” He added that no one knows how the Supreme Court will rule or what an opinion will say. “We are not changing any of the rules, not changing any of our maps, not changing any of our procedures. We are extending dates and providing the process to change those dates as we wait for the Supreme Court of the United States,” he said. To administer the election under a new congressional map, the secretary of state’s office would need a replacement map by Jan. 13, Beaullieu said. Open primaries? Primary elections in Louisiana are held under an open system commonly referred to as a “jungle primary.” All candidates run against each other on the same ballot regardless of party, and voters cast a ballot for any candidate of their choosing. But last year, Louisiana lawmakers, with Gov. Jeff Landry’s backing, decided to switch to closed party primaries for a handful of races, including U.S. House and Senate. Louisiana Supreme Court, Public Service Commission and Board of Elementary and Secondary Education races also use closed primaries now. In a closed system, Republican and Democratic candidates compete only against each other in the primary, and the party’s winner advances to the November general election. Voters must also cast a ballot in line with their party registration. Under the jungle primary, elections were held in fall. But the new closed primary elections are scheduled for spring — leaving less time to wait for a Supreme Court decision and potentially redraw congressional maps.
