Louisiana v. Department of Commerce
On January 27, 2025, the National Redistricting Foundation (NRF) supported a group of voters from California and Texas (the “Proposed Intervenors”) in moving to intervene in Louisiana v. Dept. of Commerce as Defendants. The NRF-supported Proposed Intervenors seek to protect their congressional and Electoral College representation as California and Texas voters, from a challenge by conservative state plaintiffs to a fair and accurate Census count, as well as fair congressional representation.
This motion responds to a new lawsuit filed by Louisiana, Kansas, Ohio, and West Virginia, days before the inauguration of the second Trump Administration. These states filed a new lawsuit, captioned Louisiana v. Dept. of Commerce, to force the Census Bureau exclude from apportionment undocumented residents and residents on temporary visas. This extraordinary request challenges the longstanding practice of including everyone in the census count. The plaintiffs have identified two groups of people they’d like to see excluded from apportionment. First, they are interested in excluding people who are in the United States without a documented legal status. Second, they also would like to exclude people in the United States on temporary visas.
Prior to the completion of briefing on the motions to intervene by the NRF-supported voters and other organizations, the U.S. Department of Justice sought a 60-day stay of all deadlines. The judge issuing the order announced that once he receives the joint status report, he would issue an order for a scheduling conference to set new deadlines. No scheduling conference has yet been set. The litigation is ongoing.
Ensure Every Voice Counts
The National Redistricting Foundation works to advance fair representation, so voters—not political interests—shape our democracy.
