Voters Backed By NRF Seek Restraining Order To Halt Louisiana Gerrymander

Washington, D.C. — Louisiana voters who’ve already cast ballots in Louisiana’s upcoming primary election, backed by the National Redistricting Foundation (NRF), are filing a petition for a restraining order to stop politicians from gerrymandering the congressional map ahead of the 2026 election. They are asking a state district court in Baton Rouge to block the Executive Order Governor Landry issued [JML 26-038], canceling the state’s congressional primary, from being enforced. 

Under Louisiana law, the legislature, not the Governor or the Secretary of State, sets the state’s election schedule. Governor Jeff Landry and Secretary of State Nancy Landry’s attempt to usurp that power by unilaterally canceling Louisiana’s 2026 congressional primary election is both unprecedented and unjustified. 

“Let’s be clear, there is no emergency here, only a rush to disenfranchise voters by deliberately misconstruing the horrendous Callais decision. Politicians in Louisiana are attempting to change the rules for the 2026 primary election even after SOME Louisianans have cast their ballots to secure their preferred outcome,” said former Attorney General Eric Holder. “Not only is this unfair, it’s also un-American. Politicians should not be changing election dates mid-voting because they fear the voters’ decision will not match their own personal or partisan desires.”

The National Council for Jewish Women’s Greater New Orleans Chapter is also a plaintiff in the motion. Many of NCJW’s 1,000-plus members in Louisiana routinely vote by mail. Since mail ballots for the 2026 congressional primary were distributed on April 26, and many of those members have already cast their votes in the 2026 congressional primary, the Governor’s unlawful attempt to cancel the 2026 primary election will irreparably curtail their voting rights. 

The National Redistricting Foundation (NRF) initiated one of the first challenges against Louisiana’s prior congressional map for violating Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act (VRA) of 1965. That litigation was ultimately successful in requiring the state of Louisiana to enact a new, VRA-compliant map that includes two Black opportunity districts.  This is the map Governor Landry and other Louisiana politicians are attempting to erase ahead of the 2026 elections. To learn more about the NRF’s work, click here.

The full text of the motion can be found here. 

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