This story was originally published by Louisiana Illuminator
In a nearly 10-hour committee hearing that spanned overnight, Louisiana lawmakers advanced a congressional redistricting bill that would eliminate one of the state’s two majority-Black districts, giving Republicans another seat in their bid to maintain control of Congress.
The Senate and Governmental Affairs Committee met from 7 p.m. Tuesday to 4:30 a.m. Wednesday to discuss two redistricting bills. Republicans prevailed in a 4-3 party line vote to approve Senate Bill 121 by Sen. Jay Morris, R-West Monroe, which keeps a single majority-Black district that stretches from Baton Rouge to New Orleans.
The first steps to overhaul the state’s congressional makeup comes two weeks after the U.S. Supreme Court declared Louisiana’s existing U.S. House districts an unconstitutional racial gerrymander. The 6-3 decision from conservative justices in the case Louisiana v. Callais has prompted Republicans leaders in Southern states to adjust their congressional maps as well.
The new district in Morris’ proposal is essentially the same as the one U.S. Rep. Troy Carter, D-New Orleans, won in the 2022 election, though its inclusion of Baton Rouge means it would pit Carter against U.S. Rep. Cleo Fields, D-Baton Rouge. The net result would put Republicans in five of Louisiana’s six U.S. House seats.
“This 5-1 map is a political power grab,” Sen. Sam Jenkins, D-Shreveport, said.
The committee rejected another proposal, Senate Bill 407 by Sen. Ed Price, D-Gonzales, which created two districts competitive for Democrats, though none of the districts were majority Black. Price said that since the Callais decision limited the extent lawmakers could take race into consideration, he primarily used party demographics.
The day after the Callais ruling, Republican Gov. Jeff Landry suspended the U.S. House party primaries, which take place Saturday, to give lawmakers enough time to adopt new maps for the 2026 midterm elections.
The Louisiana Senate is expected to vote Thursday on Morris’ bill, with a House committee taking the bill up next week. The proposal must get approval from both chambers by June 1.
Most of the marathon hearing featured public testimony from dozens of people supporting the Price map and opposing Morris’ version, with just one person who held the opposite viewpoint appearing before lawmakers. Hundreds more voting rights advocates packed other Senate committee rooms to watch a video feed of the meeting.
At times, the exchanges got heated. Sen. Royce Duplessis, D-New Orleans, asked a series of pointed questions to Morris that he declined to answer, including whether he believes racism still exists in America. Morris would only respond that the question was not relevant to his bill.
Sen. Blake Miguez, R-New Iberia, who is running for the 5th Congressional District, repeatedly took jabs at Democrats speaking on the bills. He told Dadrius Lanus, executive director of the Louisiana Democratic Party, after his testimony that “hatred and anger are a great representation for the Democratic Party.”
Though many advocates who spoke earlier in the night left by the time Morris’ bill was being discussed, several dozen remained in the committee room all night, occasionally stepping into the hall to dive into fast food bags other activists shared.
“I’m personally here because I can’t think of a single thing that’s more important than this,” Britain Forsyth told the committee. “I can’t think of anything more important than ensuring that everyone in my home state is able to elect someone who represents them and will listen to them and answer to them. And I’m here because Jim Crow maps like this have no place in our state.”
Ahead of Tuesday’s Senate and Governmental Affairs hearing, Sen. Gary Carter, D-New Orleans, announced he was taking a “voluntary leave of absence” from the committee.
His announcement followed a verbal clash with Morris and the panel’s chairman, Sen. Caleb Kleinpeter, R-Port Allen, at Friday’s public hearing on the congressional maps. Senate President Cameron Henry, R-Metairie, replaced Carter with Sen. Royce Duplessis, D-New Orleans, for the remainder of the legislative session.
“My voice in this process will remain strong, steady, and unwavering,” Carter said in a statement. “But now is the time for clarity and purpose. We cannot afford distractions when the stakes are this high for our democracy, our representation, and the people we serve.”
Carter’s uncle is U.S. Rep. Troy Carter.
At Friday’s hearing, Gary Carter pointedly called out Morris for the “totality” of his work and its impact on Black elected officials in New Orleans. Morris is also the author of a new law that eliminated the Orleans clerk of criminal court position as well as advancing proposals to reduce the number of judges in the city.
The rancor peaked when Carter demanded Kleinpeter turn his microphone back on after the chairman paused the meeting. Morris then exited the room, telling the people sitting behind him “y’all need to shut up.”
Lanus, who is Black, was directly behind the senator, claimed Morris used the derogatory term “boy” toward him. In a statement Friday, Morris denied having used such language, and the term cannot be heard in the legislature’s online video of the meeting .
Morris told the USA Today Network his office received a mass shooting threat after the Democratic Party leader’s claim. The senator accused the state party leaders of fomenting the hate they profess to oppose.
Attorney General Liz Murrill issued a statement Tuesday alleging that Morris was “misquoted by individuals with their own motives” and called on lawmakers to condemn the incident.