Louisiana argued that it was caught in an impossible position: At first, a federal court ruled that the state had likely violated the Voting Rights Act by drawing only one majority Black district out of six.

The Louisiana case could affect the balance of power in a narrowly divided Congress and shape how states factor race into the creation of future electoral maps.

At issue is the Louisiana legislature's creation of a Black-majority congressional district, which a group of voters claimed was an illegal racial gerrymander.