Tensions Rise in Louisiana Senate Committee During Marathon Map Approval Session

A huge crowd showed up to take part in the Senate and Governmental Affairs Committee as the panel worked to approve a new Congressional map for the State of Louisiana. The panel pulled an all night session hashing out several proposed maps.

One by Senator Ed Price would have divided the state into districts that would have 2 majority minority districts. But that plan failed on a 4-3 vote in the committee.

You could hearing chanting in the hallways as the committee worked through the proposals. Senator Jay Morris was able to win support for Senate Bill 121. This map will have only one majority-Black Congressional district.

The meeting lasted about 9 hours and did not wrap up until about 4 this morning. You could see people yawning and slumping in their chairs as the meeting dragged on.

Here's how it finally ended with the vote on the Morris plan, SB 121.

If you want to watch all the testimony which includes some tense moments, you can click here to check out the full committee meeting.

The Senate and Governmental Affairs Committee had to take up this battle after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled 6-3 in Louisiana v. Callais that the state's 2024 congressional map, which included two majority-Black districts, was an unconstitutional racial gerrymander.

The conservative majority found that using race as a predominant factor, even to comply with the Voting Rights Act, violated the 14th Amendment.

Shreveport Senator Sam Jenkins serves on the committee and he voted against the Jay Morris map.