Southern States Accelerate Redistricting After Supreme Court Ruling, Threatening Majority-Black Districts

On May 2, 2026, the U.S. Supreme Court struck down Louisiana’s 2022 congressional map for over-reliance on race, overturning a Voting Rights Act precedent and opening Southern states to redraw districts before the 2026 midterms.

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Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry paused the May 16 primary and tasked Senate chair Caleb Kleinpeter with maps; Sen. Jay Morris’s plans could give Republicans five or six seats. Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee approved a map that fragments Memphis-centered 9th district.

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Alabama Republicans push a 2023 map that would lower Black voting-age share from 48% to 39% in a district, threatening Democrat Shomari Figures. South Carolina lawmakers propose splitting Rep. Jim Clyburn’s 6th district, which holds 50% Black voters.

Tennessee Republicans enact new US House map, carving up majority-Black district in Memphis

Louisiana’s two Black-majority districts represent one-third of the state’s Black electorate. Tennessee’s 9th district now stretches eastward, diluting Memphis’s Black voting bloc. Alabama’s plan cuts Black voting-age share to 39%. Republicans say the maps protect their House majority and could add up to 13 seats; Democrats warn of losing up to ten seats, reshaping congressional and local contests.

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Gov. Jeff Landry said the primary delay allows compliance with the court ruling. Gov. Bill Lee called Tennessee’s map a population-based adjustment. Rep. Cleo Fields warned today’s congressional changes will affect tomorrow’s state and local races. ACLU’s Sarah Whittington said the ballot confusion erodes confidence in the electoral system.

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Leona Tate, a former “New Orleans Four” member, likened the redistricting to the mob that once threatened her school integration. Pastor Brandon Boutin said it’s “not just about lines on a map.” Rep. Justin Pearson called Tennessee’s map “racist tools of white supremacy at the behest of Donald J. Trump.”

Tennessee Republicans enact new US House map, carving up majority-Black district in Memphis

Louisiana’s primary suspension left about 41,000 absentee ballots—one-third of mailed votes—already cast, split between Democrats and Republicans, with no clear guidance on counting or a new primary date. Tennessee’s rapid redrawing raises voter-awareness concerns before the Aug. 6 primary; Alabama’s map request awaits a federal ruling.

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• “I need you to understand what it feels like to stand here, to have walked through that mob as a child, and to now watch elected officials do the same thing that mob ?was trying to do – just with better suits and a parliamentary ?procedure,” — Leona Tate, civil-rights activist, former member of the “New Orleans Four.”

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• “Neither race nor party affiliation nor voting patterns were considered when this was prepared,” — Sen. Jay Morris, Republican, Louisiana

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• “These maps are racist tools of white supremacy at the behest of the most powerful white supremacist in the United States of America, Donald J. Trump,” — Rep. Justin Pearson, Black Democrat, Tennessee

Tennessee enacts new US House map carving up majority-Black district in Memphis

• “Folks are unsure of what is happening with these ballots, what elections are or are not happening,” — Sarah Whittington, advocacy director, ACLU of Louisiana

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