The US Supreme Court ruled on Wednesday that an emblematic law guaranteeing the electoral representation of minorities, the Voting Rights Act, did not require Louisiana to create a second district with an African-American majority. A decision criticized by Democrats, who fear a decline in racial equality.

Published on: 04/29/2026 - 6:49 p.m. Modified on: 04/30/2026 - 09:33

The predominantly conservative American Supreme Court invalidated the electoral map of the state of Louisiana on Wednesday April 29, in a decision with serious consequences for the representation in Congress of minorities, particularly African-Americans and Hispanics.

The decision constitutes a setback for Democrats, engaged for several months in a battle with Republicans over electoral redistricting in several states, before the crucial midterm elections in November.

Donald Trump's party, on the other hand, is strengthened in the long term. “The decision rendered today by the Supreme Court (...) is a GREAT VICTORY for equality before the law”, welcomed the American president on his Truth Social network.

By six votes to three, those of the conservative judges against the progressives, the Court concluded that an emblematic law guaranteeing the electoral representation of minorities, the Voting Rights Act, did not require Louisiana to create a second district with an African-American majority.

“A law written in the blood, sweat and sacrifice of Americans”

Consequently, the electoral map of this southern state "is an unconstitutional division", rules conservative magistrate Samuel Alito in his judgment written on behalf of the majority. But for Justice Elena Kagan, “the Court’s decision will set back the fundamental right to racial equality” in elections.

For around ten years, the conservative majority of the Court has already largely emptied of its substance this flagship law adopted in 1965, in the middle of the civil rights movement, to prevent the former segregationist states of the South from infringing on the right to vote of African-Americans.

For Samuel Alito, Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act, examined in this case, was written "to uphold the Constitution – not to conflict with it." “Unfortunately, lower courts have sometimes applied the Court's jurisprudence on this Section 2 in a manner that forces States to engage in the racial discrimination that the Constitution prohibits,” he adds, with the creation of majority African-American districts.

In her opinion, Elena Kagan believes that with this decision, this section becomes a “dead letter”.

The leader of the Democrats in the Senate denounced what he believed was a “terrible blow” to this text. “A law written in the blood, sweat and sacrifice of Americans who walked, fought and died for the right to vote and to prevent racial discrimination has once again been weakened,” condemned Chuck Schumer in a statement.

Barack Obama steps up to the plate

Barack Obama, the first black president in US history, also criticized the decision, which he said would allow some states to "systematically dilute and weaken the voting power of racial minorities – as long as it is done in the name of 'partisan' logic rather than explicit 'racial bias'".

At the heart of the matter was the issue of "gerrymandering," the practice of redrawing state districts in ways that dilute a party's vote, often resulting in ludicrous geographic contours.

Donald Trump brought out this old recipe for electoral cooking in 2025, demanding from several states, notably Texas, a redistricting of their maps in order to preserve the Republican majority in Congress.

Florida's conservative-majority Legislature also voted Wednesday to redraw the state's districts and allow Republicans to gain up to four additional seats in Washington. Faced with this offensive, the Democratic Party responded and carried out its own redistricting in certain states, mainly in California and Virginia.

Also read: United States: how can the Democratic Party benefit from its success in the elections?

Six months before the legislative elections, the impact of the Supreme Court's decision could initially be limited to Louisiana. But in the future, districts with a majority of African-American voters – traditionally favoring Democrats – could be redrawn in Republican states.

In Louisiana, a state where about a third of the population is black, the Republican authorities had to create a second district with an African-American majority, under the Voting Rights Act and following a court decision. A group of white voters from Louisiana then challenged the new electoral map, which they said was discriminatory, and a court ruled in their favor, considering that the racial factor had predominated in the drawing of the district.

With AFP

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