Louisiana lawmakers launched the once-every-decade redistricting process last week during a joint legislative meeting as interest groups pressed for districts that are more racially representative and competitive.
The process of redrawing political boundaries in the state to reflect the latest census data will include a roadshow of public hearings in the next several months at different locations around the state. In addition, a special session of the legislature will take place in February to draw up the new maps.
“On the transparency side, generally speaking, the legislature is doing a good job, and I expect that to continue,” Peter Robins-Brown, policy and advocacy director for Louisiana Progress, told the Louisiana Record. “... Our concern is to make sure the public hearings are well-advertised and people know about them.”
The Louisiana redistricting effort will reflect population changes that are similar to the nation as a whole. A decade ago, the state lost a congressional seat as population growth slowed, but in this go-round Louisiana will retain the current six seats.
Other groups, including Fair Districts Louisiana, the NAACP Legal Defense Fund and the ACLU of Louisiana, are also monitoring the issue.
“Too often and in too many places, politicians have abused the redistricting process to manipulate the outcome of elections,” the ACLU of Louisiana said in a statement. “They've rigged the maps to create districts that echo their own self-interest, instead of ones that require them to listen to a broad range of constituents. This anti-democratic phenomenon is called gerrymandering. …”
Robins-Brown stressed that decisions made in the redistricting process are difficult and can involve the elimination of some lawmakers’ former districts.
“In terms of trying to predict the future, in the sense of how this process will play out, redistricting is the most political and personal thing in politics," he said.
Louisiana’s current political borders are too “locked in,” with mostly safe Republican- or Democratic-leaning districts and little in the way of competition, according to Robins-Brown.
“On the partisan side to this, right now our maps are what I would consider to be significantly lacking,” he said. “... These very, very noncompetitive districts help to fuel the division that we see in our society.”
Another issue in the process is ensuring that the state’s Black residents, who make up 33% of Louisiana’s population, are fairly represented in the state legislature and the congressional delegation, according to Robins-Brown.
Because the state has a Republican-dominated legislature and a Democratic governor, there is a greater likelihood that the process of redrawing the maps will not favor one political party over the other, he said.
“Divided government is especially pivotal in redistricting, and I think that it makes it more likely we will have an (acceptable) outcome,” Robins-Brown said.