The Black vote in Louisiana elections has been diluted by the GOP redefining Blackness

Louisiana voters in the midterm elections Tuesday are missing majority-Black House district because Republican legislators are trying to dilute who is Black.

Ahead of Tuesday’s midterm elections, Republicans in many parts of the country have worked to limit access to the ballot box for many individuals. But in Louisiana, they’ve succeeded in erasing an entire congressional district, one that not surprisingly could have gone to the Democrats. This egregious disenfranchisement — which hinges on an odious redefining of Black identity to narrow the pool of Black voters — has flown too far under the radar even as control of the U.S. House hangs in the balance.

The Louisiana move was made possible through the earlier erosion of the Voting Rights Act. Originally under the act, states with a history of discrimination toward minority voters — say Louisiana — had to pre-clear any changes to their congressional district maps with the federal government. But since 2013, when the conservatives on the Supreme Court invalidated that part of the law, the state legislatures that draw up these districts have had freer hands to marginalize certain voters.

Louisiana Republicans are trying to minimize the number of Black voters who count as, well, Black.

However, these legislators are still governed by a provision of the Voting Rights Act that requires minority opportunity districts (congressional districts in which at least half of the voting age population is a minority group). In practice, opportunity districts ensure that Black and other minority voters — who may not otherwise constitute a majority in any one district even as they make up a significant part of the state population — have a voice in Congress.

To overcome this remaining hurdle, Louisiana Republicans are trying to minimize the number of Black voters who count as, well, Black.

https://www.nbcnews.com/think/opinion/black-vote-louisiana-elections-diluted-gop-redefining-blackness-rcna55348


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Updated: 1 year ago
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