Louisiana Legislature votes to overturn Gov. Edwards' veto

BATON ROUGE, La. (BRPROUD) -- The Louisiana Legislature has voted to overturn Gov. Edwards' veto of the congressional redistricting maps.

The Senate voted 27-11 to overturn the veto after the House voted 73-21.

Gov. Edwards said he was "disappointed but not surprised" after the veto override and believes that the map is unfair while emphasizing the growth of the Black population in Louisiana.

He says it's sad that in 2022 the state is not ready to come out of some sort of supervision.

The governor upholds his decision to veto, "I slept good last night, I'm going to sleep good tonight because I did the right thing."

Moments before Gov. Edwards' 2:30 p.m. presser began, House Speaker Clay Schexnayder issued the following statement:

"For the first time in history, the Louisiana Legislature overrode a gubernatorial veto during a veto session. Today, the overwhelming will of the legislature was heard. House Bill 1 fulfills our constitutionally mandated duty to redistrict congress. It also shows true legislative independence and a clear separation of power from the executive branch."

House Speaker Clay Schexnayder

After 3:30 p.m., the Legislative Black Caucus released the following statement:

"I am disappointed in the vote that occurred today. The African American population in this state grew by 4.4% from 2010-2020. Because of this increase, our state’s congressional maps created should include at least two majority minority districts, but unfortunately, they do not. Furthermore, these maps as drawn violate Section 2 of the voting rights act. We as a caucus are extremely frustrated, as there were multiple attempts made during our Redistricting session to pave the way for another majority minority district. The LLBC will continue to do what it has always done - fight for those who are underrepresented in the state of Louisiana."

LLBC Chairman Vincent J. Pierre

Earlier in the day, members of the Louisiana House of Representatives voted to override Gov. John Bel Edwards' veto. Gov. Edwards vetoed the congressional redistricting map provided by the Louisiana Legislature on March 9. Opponents said it did not accurately represent the increased elected minority in the state.

Representative Stefanski went into the separation of powers in the state constitution. Stefanski said it’s the duty of the Louisiana legislature to create these maps every 10 years.

Rep. Marcelle asked why they did the roadshow to get public input if they were not going to listen to it?

Rep. Duplessis then got up to speak and said, "The fact of the matter is this body continues to disregard simple math. This body continues to disregard the shifting demographics of this state.”

Duplessis continued by saying the map does not put people first, it puts politics first.