The country has entered a season of redrawn lines. Louisiana is the latest state to feel it.
On Thursday, Louisiana suspended its May 16 congressional primaries after the Supreme Court ruled a day earlier that one of the state’s majority-minority districts was an unconstitutional racial gerrymander. The map must be redrawn before voters can return to it.
Gov. Jeff Landry and Attorney General Liz Murrill, both Republicans, framed the ruling as a victory with a complication attached.
“Yesterday’s historic Supreme Court victory for Louisiana has an immediate consequence for the State,” they said in a joint statement. “The Supreme Court previously stayed an injunction against the State’s enforcement of the current Congressional map. By the Court’s order, however, that stay automatically terminated with yesterday’s decision. Accordingly, the State is currently enjoined from carrying out congressional elections under the current map. We are working together with the Legislature and the Secretary of State’s office to develop a path forward.”
Governor Jeff Landry and @AGLizMurrill issued the following statement after yesterday’s Supreme Court ruling in Louisiana v. Callais.
“Yesterday’s historic Supreme Court victory for Louisiana has an immediate consequence for the State. The Supreme Court previously stayed an…
— Governor Jeff Landry (@LAGovJeffLandry) April 30, 2026
Justice Samuel Alito, writing for the majority, was more clinical. “The State’s attempt to satisfy the Middle District’s ruling, although understandable, was an unconstitutional racial gerrymander,” he wrote.
The decision landed hard on Rep. Troy Carter, one of two Democrats in Louisiana’s congressional delegation, who called it a “devastating blow.” The other, Rep. Cleo Fields, holds the very seat — the 6th District — at the center of Wednesday’s ruling.
“The consequences of this decision are immediate and severe: the hard-fought progress that led to the creation of two majority-Black congressional districts in Louisiana is now in jeopardy,” Carter said.
He went further. “Let’s be clear: this is not about so-called ‘colorblind’ principles. History has shown us time and again that policies claiming neutrality, from literacy tests to poll taxes, have been used to silence Black voices. Louisiana knows this history all too well. Without the protections of the Voting Rights Act, there is no evidence to suggest that Black voters in our state will be able to elect candidates of their choice.”
Whether the postponement extends to other races on the May 16 ballot remains unclear. Among the contests in question is the closely watched Republican Senate primary between Rep. Julia Letlow and Sen. Bill Cassidy.
What’s happening in Louisiana is not happening in isolation. Across the country, the political map is being lifted off the table and reconsidered.
In Tennessee, Sen. Marsha Blackburn, who is running for governor, has been blunt about her ambitions for the Memphis-area district that has long elected Democrats. “I’ll keep saying it: the Tennessee legislature should reconvene immediately and REDRAW THE LINES!” she posted on X Thursday.
I'll keep saying it: the Tennessee legislature should reconvene immediately and REDRAW THE LINES! pic.twitter.com/8ntYR7zq9j
— Marsha Blackburn (@VoteMarsha) April 30, 2026
In Mississippi, Republican Gov. Tate Reeves moved before the Supreme Court even ruled, calling for a special session three weeks out. The target is the Second Congressional District, held by Democratic Rep. Bennie Thompson.
Alabama is the outlier. Republican Gov. Kay Ivey said her state will not convene a special session, citing pending litigation.
“Litigation surrounding Alabama’s congressional districts is pending before the U.S. Supreme Court, and Alabama is currently under a court order prohibiting the use of new congressional districts until after the 2030 census. While we are not in position to have a special session at this time, I hope in light of this new decision, the court is favorable to Alabama,” she said, according to 1819 News.
The larger picture is one of motion.
Before Wednesday’s ruling, the mid-decade redistricting wave was already in full swing — five Democrat-favored seats in California, five Republican-favored seats in Texas, four new Republican-favored seats approved in Florida at Gov. Ron DeSantis’s urging.
Virginia voted earlier this month to adopt a 10-1 map favoring Democrats, a net gain of four seats, though that one faces an uncertain road through the state Supreme Court.
Every decade, the country redraws itself. This time, it is doing so in the middle of one — and the lines are being drawn faster than the ink can dry.
