Saying the court needed more minority representation, five justices on the Louisiana Supreme Court asked the state legislature to redrawn the judicial districts to get more equitable representation on the panel, KDSU NBC-6 New Orleans reports. The Louisiana Supreme Court sits seven justices elected in district elections. Currently, the court has five Republicans, one Democrat and one independent, with the letter being submitted to legislative leaders by the Dem and four Republicans.
Stating that they hoped redrawing the districts to include a new minority-majority district would end a four-and-a-half-year federal lawsuit seeking to improve representation in the state, where non-white citizens make up 40% of the population. “The current election districts have not been updated in more than 25 years. We feel the time to act relative to these issues is now. In this regard, a redistricting proposal has been prepared that has the support of a majority of the Supreme Court, and which addresses the issues described above,” the five justices said in their letter. “It creates a second majority minority (voting age population) election district, allowing that seat to be filled in the Fall of 2024.”