(The Center Square) —Louisiana Black Caucus members and Democratic lawmakers criticized Republican state leaders Monday over two election-related disputes: the suspension of congressional primaries and a plan to merge the Orleans Parish criminal and civil clerks of court.
Speaking at Mount Zion First Baptist Church in Baton Rouge, lawmakers said both moves risk undermining voters after elections had already begun or concluded.
“Elections are not political chess pieces,” said Rep. Kyle Green, chair of the Louisiana House Democratic Caucus. “You don’t get to start the game, see how it’s going and then flip the board when it’s over.”
Gov. Jeff Landry suspended Louisiana’s U.S. House primaries after the U.S. Supreme Court struck down the state’s congressional map in Louisiana v. Callais. Landry’s office has said the ruling prevents Louisiana from using the current map and requires the state to halt those races while other May 16 elections continue.
Green said absentee ballots had already been cast and argued the move “injects confusion, chaos and distrust” into the process.
U.S. Rep. Cleo Fields, D-Baton Rouge, has asked to join a federal lawsuit challenging the suspension, saying the election “is already underway.”
Lawmakers also criticized the state’s effort to merge the Orleans Parish criminal and civil clerks of court after Calvin Duncan was elected criminal clerk. A federal judge temporarily blocked the new law Sunday, allowing Duncan to assume the office Monday morning, but the U.S. 5th Circuit Court of Appeals later paused that order.
Landry defended the merger on X, saying media reports wrongly claimed the court had “cleared” Duncan to take office. He said the order “accomplishes nothing of substance” and that the state had appealed it.
“Do they believe Louisiana should intentionally violate the constitutional rights of her citizens under the existing map,?” Attorney General Liz Murrill asked following the press conference.
Rep. Edmond Jordan, D-Baton Rouge, chair of the Legislative Black Caucus, said the state was trying to “nullify votes from a November election.”
Sen. Gerald Boudreaux, D-Lafayette, chair of the Senate Democratic Caucus, called on churches and community groups to mobilize.
“This is a call to action,” Boudreaux said. “We can no longer sit at the table and talk about what they are doing to us.”
The disputes now remain active in court and at the Capitol, where lawmakers are expected to consider next steps on Louisiana’s congressional elections.
