Louisiana Republicans override governor's veto, enact new congressional map

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https://www.reuters.com/world/us/louisiana-republicans-override-governors-veto-enact-new-congressional-map-2022-03-31/

Louisiana Republicans override governor's veto, enact new congressional map
By Joseph Ax

March 31 (Reuters) - Louisiana's Republican-controlled legislature overrode Democratic Governor John Bel Edwards' veto of a new congressional map, ensuring the state will maintain only a single majority-Black district among its six seats.

Edwards rejected the map earlier this month, saying lawmakers should have created a second majority-Black district to account for the Southern state's large and growing minority population. One-third of the state's 4.7 million residents are Black.

Both legislative chambers voted on Wednesday to invalidate Edwards' veto largely along party lines, with a two-thirds majority required.

Within hours, several civil rights groups -- including the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund and the American Civil Liberties Union -- filed a federal lawsuit challenging the map as a violation of the federal Voting Rights Act, which protects minority voters from racial discrimination.