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Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards wants a special session on redistricting.
Edwards says the state Legislature will have to redraw congressional maps to make sure there are two majority Black districts.
He also says it's not surprising a federal judge rejected the maps because they were unfair.
Edwards originally vetoed the maps, but Louisiana legislators were able to override it.
“The Middle District’s ruling yesterday that the Congressional maps drawn by Louisiana’s Legislature earlier this year violate Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act is correct and completely unsurprising, which is why I vetoed these maps originally. It is imperative that the Louisiana Legislature come to Baton Rouge to redraw these maps quickly and fairly, in compliance with the judge’s order and before the fall elections,” Gov. Edwards said. “Louisiana’s congressional map of six districts needs to contain at least two majority African American districts in order to be fair to Louisiana’s voting population, which is one-third Black voters, per the latest U.S. Census data. This is required by simple math, basic fairness and the rule of law.”
The special session is set to start June 15.
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