The Louisiana House has voted to override Governor John Bel Edwards’ veto of a Republican-drawn Congressional map that has one majority Black District. 70 votes were needed in the 105 member House and Speaker Clay Schexnayder read the final vote.
“72 yeas, 31 nays have the veto has been overridden,” said Schexnayder.
Cheering and applause broke out after Schexnayder read the final vote.
There are 68 Republicans in the House and all of them voted for the override, plus three independents and Democratic Representative Francis Thompson.
After the House vote, there was an emotional debate in the upper chamber prior to the Senate vote. New Orleans Senator Karen Carter Peterson claims supporters of a Congressional map with one majority-minority district are choosing party over people.
‘You have blatantly chosen to ignore it and say I know what you are saying, but in this instance, I got to do what some people in my district want me to do because of political purposes and ignore the law and what’s right,” said Peterson.
Monroe Senator Katrina Jackson repeated the argument the governor and Democrats have said during the entire debate, two of the state’s six congressional districts should be black majority because nearly 33-percent of the state’s voting population is African American.
“Minorities in this state are not fairly represented in Congress that’s the bottom line,” said Jackson. “We are 33% of the state and one member in Congress,” said Jackson.
But Slidell Senator Sharon Hewitt says it matters where the Black population lives and the population is not dense enough to create two majority-minority districts and the Voting Rights Act supports their argument.
“Form the voting rights act that says nothing in this section establishes a right to have members of a protected class elected in numbers equal to their proportion in the population,” said Hewitt.
A lawsuit is expected to be filed soon challenging the Congressional District map approved that has one majority-minority district. Baton Rouge Senator Cleo Fields expects the courts will toss it out and make the Legislature draw a new map.
“I don’t feel so bad today, the Legislature that has everything it needs to do and now it’s time for the courts to do what it needs to do,” said Fields.
The vote in the Senate to override was 27-11. It’s the first time 31 years the Legislature has overridden a governor’s veto.
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