Supreme Court narrows Voting Rights Act in Louisiana redistricting case, drawing sharp dissent

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled 6-3 that Louisiana lawmakers violated the Constitution by taking race into account when drawing a new majority-Black congressional district, further narrowing the Voting Rights Act of 1965. Justice Samuel Alito, writing for the conservative majority, said the law’s aims had been satisfied, citing increased Black voter registration and turnout since the act’s passage. The decision is the third ruling in 13 years by the court’s conservative majority to limit the act’s power, following the Shelby County v. Holder decision in 2013 and Brnovich v. Democratic National Committee in 2021. In dissent, Justice Elena Kagan, joined by Justices Sotomayor and Jackson, wrote that it should be up to Congress, not the court, to decide when the law is no longer needed. A recent study analyzing nearly a billion votes cast in federal elections between 2008 and 2022 found that the racial turnout gap widened in areas previously covered by the act after the Shelby County ruling. The full impact of the decision may affect several states in the 2026 midterms and beyond. Alabama’s attorney general said the state would move quickly to apply the ruling to its redistricting.

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Source: The New York Times / AP News Published: April 30, 2026