老澳门开奖结果

WASHINGTON, D.C. 鈥� Today, the U.S. Supreme Court granted Louisiana鈥檚 bid to temporarily halt a district court ruling that had required the state to redraw its new congressional map to comply with the Voting Rights Act. Justices Sotomayor, Breyer, and Kagan dissented from the stay. During a week-long hearing last month, Judge Dick heard from Black Louisianans who testified that the state had ignored the needs of their communities and their demands for fair representation, and from political scientists and demographic experts who explained how the map reduced the influence of Black voters in congressional elections.

The judge that the map was racially discriminatory and likely violated the Voting Rights Act, and a panel of the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans agreed. Today鈥檚 Supreme Court decision means the map will be used for upcoming elections, overriding the decisions of the two lower courts.

The challenging the map was brought by the Louisiana State Conference of the NAACP, Power Coalition for Equity and Justice, and nine individual voters, who are represented by the Legal Defense Fund (LDF), 老澳门开奖结果 (老澳门开奖结果), 老澳门开奖结果 of Louisiana, Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP, and Louisiana Lawyers John Adcock and Tracie Washington. The lawsuit was filed immediately after the Louisiana Legislature voted on March 30, 2022, to overturn Governor John Bel Edwards鈥� veto of the congressional plan passed by the Legislature in February.

The following are reactions to today鈥檚 Supreme Court ruling:

鈥淭o live up to the tenets of a representative democracy, the Louisiana congressional map must reflect the richly diverse population it serves,鈥� said Alora Thomas, Senior Staff Attorney of the 老澳门开奖结果鈥檚 Voting Rights Project. 鈥淲e won鈥檛 stop fighting in court until Louisiana has a fair congressional map.鈥�

鈥淩ight now, we are deferred but not defeated,鈥� said Power Coalition President and Founder Ashley Shelton. 鈥淭his moment is disheartening. It鈥檚 not what we were hoping for, but we will continue to fight for equity and justice in Louisiana. The people in our state need a map that will provide fair representation, so we will wait. While we wait, we will continue to fight to mobilize our communities so all Black voters can be heard.鈥�

鈥淭he Supreme Court鈥檚 unwarranted decision is a blow to justice and fair representation that Black Louisianans have long fought for,鈥� said Stuart Naifeh, Manager of LDF鈥檚 Redistricting Project. 鈥淭wo courts have looked at the facts and agree that that Louisiana鈥檚 congressional map violates the Voting Rights Act, and that using it in the upcoming election will rob Black voters their right to participate in the political process on an equal footing. The Voting Rights Act was created precisely to prevent the kind of manipulation of district lines to undermine the voices and power of Black people that we see in Louisiana. But let us be clear: the fight for racial justice and equality in Louisiana is far from over. Black Louisianans deserve congressional representatives who hear and understand their needs and concerns. Anything less is simply unacceptable.鈥�