Two Democrats, Lindsay “Rubia” Garcia and Pat Forbes, have qualified for the 6th Congressional District in Louisiana, a district that has been reconfigured to favor Republican candidates. Garcia, a former teacher and law school graduate, and Forbes, a former state official, will face four Republican candidates in the November election.

Redistricting and Gerrymandering

The new congressional district map in Louisiana is expected to further tilt the state’s U.S. House delegation toward Republicans in 2027. However, this has not discouraged some Democrats from qualifying for the races. Forbes stated that he would not have entered the 6th District race if incumbent U.S. Rep. Cleo Fields was seeking re-election.

Garcia, who previously had no party affiliation, was endorsed by the Louisiana Democratic Party as their 5th District choice. She is a plaintiff in a stalled federal lawsuit challenging Gov. Jeff Landry’s executive order that called off the May 15 closed party primary elections and allowed the Republican-dominated legislature to alter the state’s congressional district lines.

Garcia’s campaign will focus on issues with broad appeal, such as healthcare, roads, and bridges. Forbes, who has the endorsement of his former boss, Gov. John Bel Edwards, will also run on a platform of bipartisan governance.

Other Congressional Races

In the 3rd Congressional District, Lafayette attorney Priscilla Gonzalez and Caleb Walker, a retail chain department manager, will challenge incumbent Rep. Clay Higgins. Metairie teacher Lauren Jewett will challenge House Majority Leader Steve Scalise in the 1st Congressional District.

U.S. Rep. Troy Carter, who is heavily favored to keep his seat in the majority-Black 2nd District, also qualified for the election. Bunkie lawyer Dan McKay is the only Democrat in the 5th District field, while Oscar “Omar” Dantzler, a Republican from Hammond, entered the 5th District race.

Original reporting: KTBS 3 (Shreveport) — read the source article.