Louisiana Voters Petition the U.S. Supreme Court to Halt the 5th Circuit Order That Delays the Adoption of Fair Electoral Maps
Washington, D.C., September 29 - An emergency application was submitted to the U.S Supreme Court on Friday, September 29, by Louisiana voters who are contesting the state's congressional map. The application seeks an immediate halt to a 5th Circuit U.S Court of Appeal's ruling which proposes to postpone the establishment of a balanced congressional map in Louisiana.
Rewinding to the origin of the lawsuit: Ardoin v. Robinson
The emergency application is an offshoot of the ongoing case, Ardoin v. Robinson, which challenges Louisiana's congressional map under Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act (VRA). The litigators – voters and civil rights groups – argue that the current congressional map undermines black voter's influence by limiting them to one elective district out of six, even though they make up 33% of the population and vote cohesively.
The allegation posits that this scenario falsely represents black voters and violates Section 2 of the VRA. The case led to the blockage of the state's map by a federal district court in June 2022, following the court's finding that the map likely diluted black voters' influence. It then ordered the state to create a map that included an additional majority-black district.
Path to the Supreme Court and the subsequent delay
Republican officials, contesting this directive, appealed to the Supreme Court and asked for an emergency stay, saying that their case mirrored Allen v. Milligan. The Court approved the stay, halting the lower court's decision to block the map and postponed the case until Allen had been determined.
Following the resolution of Allen, the Supreme Court reinstated the order beyond the stay period, thereby creating a path for a second majority-black district. However, the litigation was on hold during the pendency of Allen, and the lawsuit hadn't reached the corrective stage where a new, fair map would replace the blocked map.
Despite this progress, Republican officials requested the district court to cancel a hearing scheduled for early October but were denied. With no other legal recourse to delay the fair map, Republican officials launched another appeal to the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.
An unexpected twist in the judiciary
In an unexpected move, two conservative judges, appointed by Ronald Reagan and Donald Trump, issued a writ of mandamus (a court order to perform a specific action) to cancel the upcoming hearing which had the potential to address the Section 2 violation and determine the future of Louisiana's congressional map for 2024.
The U.S Supreme Court now faces a request for expedited relief
In light of these events, Louisiana voters have now turned to the U.S Supreme Court, seeking emergency relief to pause the 5th Circuit's mandamus order and argue that the decision poses three major flaws and reflects serious oversights. The voters want the Supreme Court to reverse the 5th Circuit's order as well.
The petitioners argue that the 5th Circuit wrongly decided to accept the mandamus based on providing more time to the Legislature. However, the Legislature neither joined the request for mandamus nor asked for additional time for the matter.
Furthermore, they criticize the legal course taken by Louisiana Republicans and the 5th Circuit, remarking that mandamus is not appropriate for managing a district court's schedule. They caution that such actions could circumvent the prescribed appellate process of the federal rules and consequently lead to unjust practices.
The petitioners conclude their application by stressing the importance of this lawsuit in preserving the voting rights of the people of Louisiana. According to the application, "This Court should issue the stay to prevent the irreparable harm of Louisianians voting in yet another election under maps that violate federal law."
The emergency application will be reviewed by Justice Samuel Alito, who has the authority over all emergency applications from the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. Justice Alito can either decide on the application himself or refer it to the full Court. If the latter occurs, a majority of five justices must vote for the emergency request for it to be granted.
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