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Stay on order for 2nd majority-Black US House district in La

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Posted at 8:38 AM, Jun 10, 2022
and last updated 2022-06-10 14:40:27-04

NEW ORLEANS (AP) - A federal appeals court has halted enforcement of a district judge’s order for Louisiana to redraw U.S. House districts by June 20 to include a second majority Black district.

A panel of the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals acted Thursday night, hours after U.S. District Judge Shelly Dick refused to put a hold on her order.

The three-judge appeals panel told both sides to submit responses by 4 p.m. Central time.

State Senate President Page Cortez and House Speaker Clay Schexnayder say the order means a special session called to revise district lines is premature and should be called off. Gov. John Bel Edwards did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

On Tuesday, Governor Edwards called for the special session of Louisiana’s Legislature to redraw Louisiana’s Congressional district maps. Read that story here

A joint statement was released by Senate President Page Cortez and House Speaker Clay Schexnayder following the court of appeals' stay of the order.

"The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeal has issued a stay of the June 6 district court’s ruling regarding congressional redistricting rendering the Governor’s proclamation calling and convening the Legislature into a special session unnecessary and premature. Until the courts have made a final determination on the congressional maps as they were passed by a super majority of the Legislature, we are asking the Governor to rescind his special session call. Before the judicial redistricting process is complete, any special session would be premature and a waste of taxpayer money."