BATON ROUGE, La. (WGNO) — Gov. John Bel Edwards has vetoed the congressional redistricting map drawn by the Louisiana Legislature.
In a statement Wednesday night, Edwards said he vetoed the map because it does not add a second majority-minority district and runs afoul of federal law.
He also announced that he will not sign the state House and Senate district maps passed in the recent redistricting session, allowing them to become law without his approval and that he has signed into law maps that designated new districts for the Louisiana State Board of Elementary and Secondary Education and the Louisiana Public Service Commission.
Out of the 163 total districts created by the Legislature in the various bills passed, not a single additional majority-minority seat was created, despite the fact that the percentage of the black population increased and the white population decreased.
“Today, after careful consideration, review, discussion with legislators, and consultation with voting rights experts, I have vetoed the proposed congressional map drawn by Louisiana’s Legislature because it does not include a second majority African American district, despite Black voters making up almost a third of Louisianans per the latest U.S. Census data. This map is simply not fair to the people of Louisiana and does not meet the standards set forth in the federal Voting Rights Act. The Legislature should immediately begin the work of drawing a map that ensures Black voices can be properly heard in the voting booth. It can be done and it should be done.
Gov. Edwards
For more information, click to read the Governor’s veto messages for HB 1 and for SB 5.
