Background In the last installment of this series, we discussed how a Supreme Court redistricting plan might look if a partisan Democratic (and a Republican) redistricter were to draw the lines, given recent population estimates.
Archive | Louisiana
RSS feed for this sectionFantasy redistricting – Part II (Louisiana Supreme Court)
Background In the first installment of this series, we discussed the basics of redistricting. In this installment, we will put this theory into practice by developing a hypothetical map for the Louisiana Supreme Court, given current population estimates.
Upset in the 5th congressional district – what happened ?
There was a congressional runoff tonight in the 5th Congressional district in northeast Louisiana/the Florida Parishes, and in a two Republican race, businessman Vance McAllister was elected in a 60-40% landslide. In analyzing this race, the following three points need to be made:
Decision 2013 – 5th Congressional District Poll
The 5th Congressional District is located in Northeast Louisiana, although after reapportionment, additional territory in the Florida Parishes and in St Landry Parish was added. This is a Republican leaning district with a noticeable Democratic base, due to the 33% black voter registration. Mitt Romney carried this district 61-38%, while in the 2008 Senate race, […]
Ground Zero: Is Baton Rouge City Court a test case for the Voting Rights Act ?
The issue of appropriate minority representation in the legislative and judicial branches of Louisiana government is one that has been litigated for decades, and that litigation has surfaced again, in light of the US Supreme Court’s repealing one of the provisions of the 1965 Voting Rights Act. The repealed provision (also known as “Section 4”) […]
Decision 2014: “Pregame” (Part 1: the 2013 elections)
Election season will soon be upon us. Though it is technically true that this is an “off year”, there are several elections occurring later this year that will set the stage for the 2014 midterm elections. In this installment of a two part article, we will discuss those 2013 elections that will set the tone […]
2012 Louisiana Census Data
Recently, the US Census released interim population estimates showing population changes for all 50 states between April 2, 2010 (the date of the last Census) and July 1, 2012. While this interim count is an estimate, it is useful for tracking population changes throughout the decade to be able to predict future population/demographic changes.
(Proposed) Southeast Baton Rouge school district: can it get 70 votes ?
Background In our previous posting, we had noted that there were several hurdles that had to be cleared before voters could decide whether the southeastern portion of East Baton Rouge Parish would be able to form its own school district. We also noted that it was the House (not the Senate) where the bill has […]
(Proposed) Southeast Baton Rouge school district: what will it take to pass?
Background in Louisiana, school districts are usually synonymous with the parish lines, with five exceptions: Monroe, Bogalusa, Baker, Zachary, and Central – these are separate school districts within their respective parishes.
Affordable Care Act (“Obamacare”) vote in the Louisiana House of Representatives
When the Supreme Court essentially left the Affordable Care Act (i.e., “Obamacare”) intact last year in a 5-4 decision, it also allowed the states to choose whether they wanted to participate in the expansion of the Medicaid program. That created a situation where each state is is independently deciding whether to participate in this part of the […]