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The Supreme Court ruled that Louisiana’s racially gerrymandered districts were unconstitutional a week ago – but it’s all coming to a head right now. On Thursday, May 7, Republicans in the South Carolina state House voted to extend the legislative calendar for redistricting. Tennessee Governor Bill Lee signed a new GOP-passed congressional map into law on the same day, eliminating the district of the state’s last House Democrat. And the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals vacated its own prior opinion validating the racially gerrymandered map in Louisiana. Things are cascading rapidly now – don’t blink or you may miss it!
Redistricting Rulings
As Liberty Nation News’ Graham J Noble reported shortly after it happened: On April 29, the US Supreme Court dropped what may prove to be its most consequential decision in recent history. The Court ruled in Louisiana v. Callais that the state’s congressional voting districts were unconstitutionally gerrymandered based on race alone. That’s the beginning of the story in a nutshell, but it’s far from the end.
As John Klar later reported for LNN, “on May 4, the Supreme Court granted a request that fueled rancor on the bench.”
“Under the rules, the certified judgement in Louisiana v. Callais would normally be issued 32 days following the release of the opinion,” Klar explained. But the Court shortened it, issuing “judgement forthwith.” Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson alleged this was effectively siding with Republicans – but Justice Samuel Alito dismissed those claims as “baseless and insulting,” arguing that “the dissent would require that the 2026 congressional elections in Louisiana be held under a map that has been held to be unconstitutional.”
Flash forward to Thursday, May 7, and even the US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit – which had previously upheld the racially gerrymandered districts – vacated its own previous order and remanded it back to the district to reconsider in light of the Supreme Court ruling.
And with that, it seems, the floodgates were opened.
A Red Wave Washing Over the Maps?
Jeff Landry, Louisiana’s Republican governor, promptly suspended congressional elections after the initial Supreme Court ruling to give time for the legislature – both chambers of which are controlled by Republican majorities – to create a new congressional map. As Graham pointed out in his report, redistricting without regard to race is expected to gain the GOP one or perhaps even two more seats in the US House.
But on May 7, two more states saw major redistricting action. Tennessee Governor Bill Lee signed into law a new map that split up the last remaining Democrat-held district in the state, and the South Carolina House voted to extend its legislative session to leave time to redraw its own congressional map.
Rep. Steve Cohen (D-TN), the Volunteer State’s last Democrat in the House, currently represents District 9, which includes Memphis and the surrounding areas in Shelby and Tipton Counties. The new map splits Memphis and Shelby County across three different districts. The final vote in the state House brought chaos, as Democrats and protesters shouted their outrage. Some stormed out – others were removed by the state police. One Democrat lawmaker, Antonio Parkinson of Memphis, demanded that the city secede from the state of Tennessee! The result was a foregone conclusion, however. With the GOP controlling the governorship, a 75-23 majority in the House, and holding the Senate 27-6, there was no other practical outcome.
It’s a similar story in South Carolina. Republicans control the Senate 34-12 and the House 88-36, and when they almost inevitably pass their own redrawn map (after the state Senate passes the extension, of course), Governor Henry McMaster – also a Republican – will undoubtedly sign it. What remains less certain, however, is how much difference it will actually make in the Palmetto State.
The South Carolina delegation to the US House is already six Republicans to just one Democrat. Rep. James Clyburn (D-SC), the Democratic Party legend largely responsible for Joe Biden’s election as president, is the sole Democrat in Congress from his state. Representing the Sixth Congressional District, Clyburn has held his seat since 1993. When elected, he was the first black man to represent South Carolina in nearly a century – and if he wins re-election in November and goes on to serve an 18th term, he’ll be the longest-serving South Carolinian in US House history.
Redistricting could make him vulnerable, but he has held his seat without fail in 17 elections across 33 years so far. The 2021-2022 congressional map did strengthen his position by shifting black voters out of neighboring districts, but it would seem difficult to gerrymander him out of office, given the history of his district.
Still, even if Clyburn manages to hold on in South Carolina, this is likely just the beginning of the red-state redistricting wave. There are a total of 52 “majority-minority” congressional districts across 11 states with GOP trifectas, and most of them are represented by Democrats – many of whom likely only have sufficient votes because of racially gerrymandered maps. Tennessee, Louisiana, and South Carolina may only bring one or two each, but Texas, Florida, and Georgia could see 24, 13, and five blue seats threatened, respectively. That isn’t just a House majority; that’s the lower chamber painted red for years to come.
