Louisiana lawmakers have until Jan. 15 to enact new congressional map, court says

By SARA CLINE
Associated Press

BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — The Louisiana Legislature has until Jan. 15 to enact a new congressional map after a lower court last year ruled that the current political boundaries dilute the power of the state’s Black voters. The deadline was issued Friday by a federal appeals court. However, whether Gov. John Bel Edwards will call a special session to redraw the political boundaries before he leaves office is unclear. It’s also unclear whether Gov.-elect Jeff Landry will have enough time to call a special redistricting session and meet the court’s deadline. If the state legislature does not pass a new map by mid-January, then the lower district court plans to conduct a trial and “decide on a plan for the 2024 elections.”