Cases & Actions
Nairne v. Landry
Together with the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), the Legal Defense Fund (LDF), the ACLU of Louisiana, Cozen O’Connor, and Louisiana attorneys Ron Wilson and John Adcock, the Election Law Clinic represents Louisiana voters and civil rights groups in a lawsuit challenging Louisiana’s state House and Senate district maps under the Voting Rights Act. The discriminatorily drawn state house maps deny Black voters an equal opportunity to participate in the political process and elect candidates of their choice.
STATUS: ACTIVE
UPDATED: February 26, 2024
ISSUES: Gerrymandering
BACKGROUND
Following the 2020 census, the Louisiana Legislature redrew the state House and Senate districts to account for population changes. The resulting map diminished the voting influence of Black Louisiana voters through tactics like “packing” them into fewer districts and “cracking” them among other districts, in violation of Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act (VRA).
In March 2022, Black Louisiana voters and civil rights groups brought a lawsuit to challenge the new legislative maps under Section 2. The complaint argued that Black voters in Louisiana can constitute a voting majority in six more reasonably configured state House districts and three more reasonably configured state Senate districts.
At trial in December 2023, the plaintiffs explained how their voting power is diluted under the new maps, while expert witnesses testified that the state’s Black population could make up more majority-minority districts than the enacted plan recognized.
In an extensive opinion issued in February 2024, a federal court ruled in favor of the plaintiffs, finding that the current state House and Senate districts violate Section 2. The court agreed that the map diluted Black voters’ ability to elect candidates of their choice by packing and cracking them into districts to diminish their voting power. To ensure that the principles of equal representation for all are upheld, the court prohibited the use of the discriminatory map in the 2024 elections and ordered the state of Louisiana to enact new state House and Senate maps that comply with the VRA.
This win is a major step in ensuring that future elections reflect the true diversity of Louisiana’s population. The court’s ruling underscores the need to safeguard voting rights for all and sets a precedent against discriminatory redistricting efforts to ensure Louisiana’s maps are just and free from racial bias.
“This ruling represents a win for Louisiana’s Black voters, who will now get an equal voice in the state House,” said Alora Thomas-Lundborg, senior counsel at Harvard Election Law Clinic.