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Louisiana's 2nd Congressional District
Louisiana's 2nd Congressional District in the United States House of Representatives is represented by Troy Carter (D).
As of the 2020 Census, Louisiana representatives represented an average of 776,911 residents. After the 2010 Census, each member represented 758,994 residents.
Elections
See also: Louisiana's 2nd Congressional District election, 2030
Louisiana elections use the majority-vote system. All candidates compete in the same primary, and a candidate can win the election outright by receiving more than 50 percent of the vote. If no candidate does, the top two vote recipients from the primary advance to the general election, regardless of their partisan affiliation.
There are no official candidates yet for this election.
See also: United States House of Representatives elections in Louisiana, 2028
Louisiana elections use the majority-vote system. All candidates compete in the same primary, and a candidate can win the election outright by receiving more than 50 percent of the vote. If no candidate does, the top two vote recipients from the primary advance to the general election, regardless of their partisan affiliation.
There are no official candidates yet for this election.
See also: Louisiana's 2nd Congressional District election, 2026
Louisiana elections use the majority-vote system. All candidates compete in the same primary, and a candidate can win the election outright by receiving more than 50 percent of the vote. If no candidate does, the top two vote recipients from the primary advance to the general election, regardless of their partisan affiliation.
General election
The general election will occur on November 3, 2026.
General election for U.S. House Louisiana District 2
Incumbent Troy Carter (D) and Ray Smith (R) are running in the general election for U.S. House Louisiana District 2 on November 3, 2026.
Candidate | ||
 | Troy Carter (D) | |
 | Ray Smith (R)  | |
| ||||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
See also: Louisiana's 2nd Congressional District election, 2024
Louisiana elections use the majority-vote system. All candidates compete in the same primary, and a candidate can win the election outright by receiving more than 50 percent of the vote. If no candidate does, the top two vote recipients from the primary advance to the general election, regardless of their partisan affiliation.
General election
The general election scheduled for December 7, 2024, was canceled.
Nonpartisan primary
Nonpartisan primary election for U.S. House Louisiana District 2
Incumbent Troy Carter (D) won election outright against Christy Lynch (R), Devin Lance Graham (R), Devin Davis (D), and Shondrell Perrilloux (R) in the primary for U.S. House Louisiana District 2 on November 5, 2024.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Troy Carter (D) | 60.3 | 184,009 |
 | Christy Lynch (R) | 13.6 | 41,641 | |
 | Devin Lance Graham (R) | 12.8 | 39,174 | |
 | Devin Davis (D) | 10.6 | 32,482 | |
 | Shondrell Perrilloux (R) | 2.6 | 7,878 | |
| Total votes: 305,184 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
See also: Louisiana's 2nd Congressional District election, 2022
Louisiana elections use the majority-vote system. All candidates compete in the same primary, and a candidate can win the election outright by receiving more than 50 percent of the vote. If no candidate does, the top two vote recipients from the primary advance to the general election, regardless of their partisan affiliation.
General election
The general election scheduled for December 10, 2022, was canceled.
Nonpartisan primary
Nonpartisan primary election for U.S. House Louisiana District 2
Incumbent Troy Carter (D) won election outright against Dan Lux (R) in the primary for U.S. House Louisiana District 2 on November 8, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Troy Carter (D) | 77.1 | 158,120 |
 | Dan Lux (R) | 22.9 | 46,927 | |
| Total votes: 205,047 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
See also: Louisiana's 2nd Congressional District special election, 2021
Louisiana elections use the majority-vote system. All candidates compete in the same primary, and a candidate can win the election outright by receiving more than 50 percent of the vote. If no candidate does, the top two vote recipients from the primary advance to the general election, regardless of their partisan affiliation.
General election
Special general election for U.S. House Louisiana District 2
Troy Carter (D) defeated Karen Peterson (D) in the special general election for U.S. House Louisiana District 2 on April 24, 2021.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Troy Carter (D) | 55.2 | 48,513 |
 | Karen Peterson (D) | 44.8 | 39,297 | |
| Total votes: 87,810 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Nonpartisan primary
Special Nonpartisan primary election for U.S. House Louisiana District 2
The following candidates ran in the special primary for U.S. House Louisiana District 2 on March 20, 2021.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Troy Carter (D) | 36.4 | 34,402 |
| ✔ | | Karen Peterson (D) | 22.9 | 21,673 |
 | Gary Chambers (D) | 21.3 | 20,163 | |
 | Claston Bernard (R) | 9.8 | 9,237 | |
 | Chelsea Ardoin (R) | 3.4 | 3,218 | |
 | Greg Lirette (R) | 2.5 | 2,349 | |
| Sheldon Vincent Sr. (R) | 0.8 | 754 | ||
 | Desiree Ontiveros (D) | 0.7 | 699 | |
 | Belden Batiste (Independent) | 0.6 | 598 | |
| Harold John (D) | 0.4 | 403 | ||
 | Mindy McConnell (L) | 0.3 | 323 | |
 | J. Christopher Johnson (D) | 0.3 | 288 | |
| Jenette Porter (D) | 0.3 | 244 | ||
| Lloyd Kelly (D) | 0.1 | 122 | ||
 | Brandon Jolicoeur (Independent) | 0.1 | 94 | |
| Total votes: 94,567 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
See also: Louisiana's 2nd Congressional District election, 2020
Louisiana elections use the majority-vote system. All candidates compete in the same primary, and a candidate can win the election outright by receiving more than 50 percent of the vote. If no candidate does, the top two vote recipients from the primary advance to the general election, regardless of their partisan affiliation.
General election
The general election scheduled for December 5, 2020, was canceled.
Nonpartisan primary
Nonpartisan primary election for U.S. House Louisiana District 2
The following candidates ran in the primary for U.S. House Louisiana District 2 on November 3, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Cedric Richmond (D) | 63.6 | 201,636 |
 | David Schilling (R) | 15.0 | 47,575 | |
| Glenn Harris (D) | 10.6 | 33,684 | ||
| Sheldon Vincent Sr. (R) | 4.9 | 15,565 | ||
| | Belden Batiste (Independent) | 3.9 | 12,268 | |
 | Colby James (Independent) | 2.0 | 6,254 | |
| Total votes: 316,982 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Louisiana elections use the majority-vote system. All candidates compete in the same primary, and a candidate can win the election outright by receiving more than 50 percent of the vote. If no candidate does, the top two vote recipients from the primary advance to the general election, regardless of their partisan affiliation.
General election
The general election scheduled for December 8, 2018, was canceled.
Nonpartisan primary
Nonpartisan primary election for U.S. House Louisiana District 2
Incumbent Cedric Richmond (D) won election outright against Jesse Schmidt (Independent), Belden Batiste (Independent), and Shawndra Rodriguez (Independent) in the primary for U.S. House Louisiana District 2 on November 6, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Cedric Richmond (D) | 80.6 | 190,182 |
 | Jesse Schmidt (Independent) | 8.7 | 20,465 | |
| | Belden Batiste (Independent) | 7.3 | 17,260 | |
 | Shawndra Rodriguez (Independent) | 3.4 | 8,075 | |
| Total votes: 235,982 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
District map
Redistricting
2020-2024
On June 27, 2025, the U.S. Supreme Court scheduled Louisiana v. Callais for reargument in its next term.[4] In August 2025, the Court scheduled arguments for October 15, 2025.[5]
The Court first heard oral arguments in the case on March 24, 2025.[6] On November 4, 2024, the U.S. Supreme Court agreed to hear Louisiana v. Callais (formerly Callais v. Landry) consolidated with Robinson v. Callais — two appeals from the U.S. District Court for Western Louisiana decision that struck down the state's new congressional map. The Court noted probable jurisdiction and allotted one hour for oral argument.[7][8]
On May 15, 2024, the U.S. Supreme Court blocked an April 30 ruling by the U.S. District Court for Western Louisiana striking down the state's congressional map. As a result, the map was used for Louisiana’s 2024 congressional elections.[9] According to ScotusBlog,
| “ | In a brief unsigned order the justices blocked a ruling by a federal court that had barred the state from using the new map on the ground that legislators had relied too heavily on race when they drew it earlier this year. The order cited an election doctrine known as the Purcell principle – the idea that courts should not change election rules during the period just before an election because of the confusion that it will cause for voters and the problems that doing so could cause for election officials. The lower court’s order will remain on hold, the court indicated, while an appeal to the Supreme Court moves forward.[9][10] | ” |
Gov. Jeff Landry signed the congressional map into law on January 22 after a special legislative session. The state House of Representatives voted 86-16 and the state Senate voted 27-11 to adopt this congressional map on January 19.[11][12]
According to NPR, "Under the new map, Louisiana's 2nd District, which encompasses much of New Orleans and surrounding areas, will have a Black population of about 53%. Democratic U.S. Rep. Troy Carter represents that district, which has been Louisiana's only majority-Black district for several years. Louisiana's 6th District now stretches from parts of Shreveport to Baton Rouge and will have a Black population of about 56%."[13]
On November 10, 2023, a three-judge panel of the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals vacated a 2022 injunction that blocked the implementation of Louisiana’s congressional district maps, for violating the Voting Rights Act by diluting the power of African American voters. The court also issued a deadline for the state to enact new maps for the 2024 election cycle.[14] On November 30, 2023, the U.S. District Court for Middle Louisiana extended the deadline for the creation of new maps that comply with the Voting Rights Act to January 30, 2024.[15] Gov. Jeff Landry called a special session of the Louisiana state legislature on January 15, 2024 — days after he assumed office on January 8 — to draw new maps in compliance with the court's order.[16]
How does redistricting in Louisiana work? In Louisiana, both congressional and state legislative districts are drawn by the state legislature. These lines are subject to veto by the governor. In the event that the legislature is unable to approve state legislative district boundaries, the state supreme court must draw the lines. There is no such practice that applies to congressional districts.[17]
The state legislature has adopted guidelines for redistricting. These guidelines suggest that both congressional and state legislative districts be contiguous and "respect recognized political boundaries and the natural geography of the state to the extent practicable." These guidelines are non-binding; as such, the legislature may alter them at its discretion.[17]
Below are the congressional maps in effect before and after the 2020 redistricting cycle. The map on the right was in effect for Louisiana’s 2024 congressional elections.
2020
2024
2010-2011
In 2011, the Louisiana State Legislature re-drew the congressional districts based on updated population information from the 2010 census.
District analysis
- See also: The Cook Political Report's Partisan Voter Index
- See also: FiveThirtyEight's elasticity scores
2026
Heading into the 2026 elections, based on results from the 2024 and 2020 presidential elections, the Cook Partisan Voter Index for this district is D+17. This meant that in those two presidential elections, this district's results were 17 percentage points more Democratic than the national average. This made Louisiana's 2nd the 86th most Democratic district nationally.[18]
2024
Heading into the 2024 elections, based on results from the 2020 and 2016 presidential elections, the Cook Partisan Voter Index for this district was D+16. This meant that in those two presidential elections, this district's results were 16 percentage points more Democratic than the national average. This made Louisiana's 2nd the 87th most Democratic district nationally.[19]
Daily Kos calculated what the results of the 2020 presidential election in this district would have been following redistricting. Joe Biden (D) would have defeated Donald Trump (R) 67.1%-31.2%.[20]
2022
Heading into the 2022 elections, based on results from the 2020 and 2016 presidential elections, the Cook Partisan Voter Index for this district was D+25. This meant that in those two presidential elections, this district's results were 25 percentage points more Democratic than the national average. This made Louisiana's 2nd the 38th most Democratic district nationally.[21]
Daily Kos calculated what the results of the 2020 presidential election in this district would have been following redistricting. Joe Biden (D) would have received 75.4% of the vote in this district and Donald Trump (R) would have received 22.9%.[22]
2018
Heading into the 2018 elections, based on results from the 2016 and 2012 presidential elections, the Cook Partisan Voter Index for this district was D+25. This meant that in those two presidential elections, this district's results were 25 percentage points more Democratic than the national average. This made Louisiana's 2nd Congressional District the 42nd most Democratic nationally.[23]
FiveThirtyEight's September 2018 elasticity score for states and congressional districts measured "how sensitive it is to changes in the national political environment." This district's elasticity score was 0.98. This means that for every 1 point the national political mood moved toward a party, the district was expected to move 0.98 points toward that party.[24]
See also
- Redistricting in Louisiana
- Louisiana's 2nd Congressional District election, 2024
- Louisiana's 2nd Congressional District election, 2022
- Louisiana's 2nd Congressional District election, 2020
- Louisiana's 2nd Congressional District election, 2018
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Louisiana Secretary of State, "Candidate Inquiry," accessed July 25, 2016
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Louisiana Elections and Voting, "Candidate list," accessed August 27, 2014
- ↑ Politico, "2012 Election Map, Louisiana"
- ↑ Louisiana Illuminator, "U.S. Supreme Court punts Louisiana redistricting case to next term," June 27, 2025
- ↑ Louisiana Illuminator, "U.S. Supreme Court sets date for Louisiana redistricting case rehearing," August 13, 2025
- ↑ NBC News, "Supreme Court wrestles with Louisiana racial gerrymandering claim," March 24, 2025
- ↑ SCOTUSblog, "Supreme Court will hear case on second majority-Black district in Louisiana redistricting," November 4, 2024
- ↑ The American Redistricting Project, "Louisiana v. Callais," November 4, 2024
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 SCOTUSblog, "Court allows Louisiana to move forward with two majority-Black districts," May 15, 2024
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ Roll Call, "Louisiana Legislature passes new congressional map," January 19, 2024
- ↑ Ballotpedia's Legislation Tracker, "Louisiana SB8," accessed January 25, 2024
- ↑ NPR, "After a court fight, Louisiana's new congressional map boosts Black political power," January 23, 2024
- ↑ The New York Times, "Louisiana Must Finalize New Voting Map by January, Federal Appeals Court Says," November 10, 2023
- ↑ AP News, "Louisiana granted extra time to draw new congressional map that complies with Voting Rights Act," December 12, 2023
- ↑ Roll Call, "Louisiana Legislature passes new congressional map," January 19, 2024
- ↑ 17.0 17.1 All About Redistricting, "Louisiana," accessed April 30, 2015
- ↑ Cook Political Report, "2025 Cook PVI℠: District Map and List (119th Congress)," accessed July 1, 2025
- ↑ Cook Political Report, "The 2022 Cook Partisan Voting Index (Cook PVI℠)," accessed January 10, 2024
- ↑ Daily Kos, "Daily Kos Elections' 2020 presidential results by congressional district, for new and old districts," accessed September 15, 2022
- ↑ Cook Political Report, "The 2022 Cook Partisan Voting Index (Cook PVI℠)," accessed February 6, 2023
- ↑ Daily Kos, "Daily Kos Elections' 2020 presidential results by congressional district, for new and old districts," accessed September 15, 2022
- ↑ Cook Political Report, "Introducing the 2017 Cook Political Report Partisan Voter Index," April 7, 2017
- ↑ FiveThirtyEight, "Election Update: The Most (And Least) Elastic States And Districts," September 6, 2018
