Republican leadership in Louisiana has suspended the upcoming primary elections for the six House seats up for grabs after the Supreme Court ruled the state must redraw its congressional map, according to a report.
MAGA’s Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry, appointed by President Donald Trump as special envoy to Greenland, announced the plans in a statement Thursday, just two days before early voting in the May 16 primary elections was due to begin, and despite overseas ballots being sent out weeks ago.
“Yesterday’s historic Supreme Court victory for Louisiana has an immediate consequence for the State,” Landry said in a joint statement with Louisiana’s Attorney General Liz Murrill. “The Supreme Court previously stayed an injunction against the State’s enforcement of the current Congressional map. By the Court’s order, however, that stay automatically terminated with yesterday’s decision.”
“Accordingly, the State is currently enjoined from carrying out congressional elections under the current map,” the statement continued. “We are working together with the Legislature and the Secretary of State’s office to develop a path forward.”
Louisiana currently has four GOP representatives in the House and two Democrats.
The move, first reported by The Washington Post. comes on the heels of the Supreme Court ruling Wednesday that the creation of a second Black-majority district was an “unconstitutional racial gerrymander,” a ruling that could potentially help Republicans in upcoming elections.
Democrats said suspending the primary elections to redraw the map at this time was “legally shaky at best.”
Democratic State Sen. Royce Duplessis told the Louisiana Illuminator that he questioned the legality of suspending the House primaries when absentee ballots have already been sent out.
“Legally, I don’t believe they can do that,” Duplessis told the newspaper. “But in terms of fairness, I believe that it is absolutely wrong for them to even be thinking about undoing the election that has already been done.”
Nate Blouin, a Democratic Utah state senator, said that “suspending elections is the end of the road” in a post on X.
Drew Savicki, a political analyst, accused the Republicans of “openly trying to steal an election,” while author and political historian Brian Rosenwald said the move would likely be “immediately challenged” in court.
“Will be real curious to see what law permits ‘my party needs to stop the election so it can steal 2 more seats’ as a rationale,” he added.
“In Louisiana trying to suspend a primary in hopes of maybe getting 1-2 Republican seats just weeks before Election Day in 2026 is legally shaky at best,” reacted David Earl Williams, a Navy veteran. “Early voting is about to begin, ballots are set, and courts generally reject last-minute changes that disrupt voters. If this isn’t strictly required to comply with a ruling, it’s likely to get blocked fast.”
The Supreme Court decision may have implications in the midterm elections, as it could prompt other Republican-led states to draw new maps that follow a looser interpretation of Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act.
Landry celebrated the ruling in a statement Wednesday.
“The Supreme Court has affirmed what we have said for years: drawing districts for political reasons is the States’ prerogative, not a federal civil-rights violation,” he said. “Federal judges cannot force a State to engage in race-based redistricting, and plaintiffs can no longer repackage partisan disagreements as Voting Rights Act cases.”
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