Louisiana Rep. Cleo Fields won’t seek re-election after Supreme Court ruled district was gerrymandered

Rep. Cleo Fields (D-La.) revealed Tuesday that he will not seek a second House term after the Supreme Court ruled this year that his majority-black district was the product of an “unconstitutional gerrymander.”

“After a great deal of prayer and reflection, I have decided not to seek reelection, to Congress, in the 6th District or any other district in Louisiana,” said Fields, 63, who added that he would instead run for the state Senate, where he served for nearly 20 years across three separate stints.

Field’s announcement comes after the Pelican State’s Republican-controlled legislature redrew the congressional map in May following the high court’s April 29 decision that Louisiana had been forced to add a second majority-black district in violation of the 14th Amendment.

The new map reconfigures Fields’ former district to include predominently white areas around the state capital, Baton Rouge, after previously including much of the cities of Lafayette and Shreveport.