Supreme Court narrows Voting Rights Act Section 2 in 6-3 ruling, triggering redistricting moves across multiple states

The Supreme Court's decision in Louisiana v. Callais, handed down on Wednesday, struck down Louisiana's 6th Congressional District — redrawn in 2024 to include a predominantly Black electorate — and held that states may not use race either to draw districts that disenfranchise voters or to help minority communities support their preferred candidates, according to the Washington Examiner. Louisiana Secretary of State Nancy Landry declared an emergency, and Gov. Jeff Landry directed lawmakers to pass a new congressional map on an expedited timeline, according to the Examiner.

Republican-led states moved quickly to act on the ruling. Alabama filed emergency motions asking courts to allow it to revert to an older map with only a single majority-Black district, Reuters reported. Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey said she would call a special legislative session to redraw congressional maps, reversing her earlier position of waiting for ongoing litigation to resolve, according to the Examiner. In Tennessee, Gov. Bill Lee announced a special legislative session to review the state's map, after President Donald Trump said he spoke with Lee and urged him to address what he described as flaws in the map. Mississippi officials signaled a special session could extend beyond its stated purpose to include congressional districts, potentially targeting the seat held by Rep. Bennie Thompson, the state's only Democratic member of Congress, the Examiner reported. Florida had already cleared a new map through its legislature before the ruling was issued, with that plan projected to create up to four additional Republican-friendly seats.

Democrats responded with a range of reactions. Rep. Bennie Thompson told CNN the ruling represented "Jim Crow 2.0." Rep. Troy Carter of Louisiana said the implications "go throughout every congressional district, every school board district, every legislative district." Senate Democrats renewed calls to pass the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, though the measure remains stalled in the Senate, according to the Examiner. New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherrill said she would be willing to work with the state legislature to revisit redistricting as a counterbalance, while acknowledging constitutional limitations on acting immediately.

On the Democratic side, Fox News reported that several House members defended their party's own redistricting efforts as a necessary response to Republican-led moves. Rep. Jason Crow of Colorado described the situation as an "arms race" begun by Republicans, while Rep. Marc Veasey of Texas argued Democrats had historically failed to respond aggressively enough to earlier Republican redistricting efforts and bore some responsibility for the current moment.

Legal experts and observers cited by the Examiner said the ruling's most significant effects are likely to be felt after 2026, particularly heading into the 2028 elections and the next round of redistricting following the 2030 census. Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp said the ruling would not affect his state's 2026 elections — with early voting already underway — but acknowledged Georgia would need to adopt new maps before 2028, Politico reported. Josh Rultenberg, author of Draw the Line in Ohio, told the Examiner: "If Congress doesn't act between now and 2030 — when the next census comes out — the maps are just going to be set on fire."