Axios New Orleans

April 30, 2026
🎷 Morning, fabulous folks! It's Thursday and International Jazz Day.
- It's also the start of the second weekend of Jazz Fest.
- And it's gonna be May tomorrow.
Today's weather: Mostly cloudy with a slight chance of thunderstorms. High of 82.
🎧 Sounds like: "Ain't Life Grand" by Widespread Panic, who headlines the Festival Stage today. Full lineup.
Today's newsletter is 807 words — a 3-minute read.
1 big thing: 😵💫 Elections in limbo
Louisiana's attorney general is raising the possibility of delaying election dates to give lawmakers time to redraw the state's congressional map after the U.S. Supreme Court struck down the current one yesterday.
Why it matters: The ruling throws Louisiana's election timeline into uncertainty and could reshape how districts are drawn across the South.
The big picture: Early voting begins Saturday for party primaries for the hotly contested U.S. Senate seat, adding urgency for state officials as they weigh next steps.
- Absentee ballots have already been mailed to overseas voters, says Janai Nelson, president of the Legal Defense Fund.
- AG Liz Murrill told The Times-Picayune that the Legislature could push the early voting dates "into the future" to give lawmakers time to draw a new map before the November general election.
- She'll be looking to the Legislature "to see which direction they want to go," reporter Alyse Pfeil writes.
- Gov. Jeff Landry, Secretary of State Nancy Landry and legislative leaders yesterday said they are reviewing the ruling and didn't commit to immediate action.
The latest: The Supreme Court's 6-3 decision found that Louisiana's use of race in creating a second majority-Black congressional district was an "unconstitutional racial gerrymander," Justice Samuel Alito wrote for the majority.
- The ruling limits a key provision of the Voting Rights Act, which helped end Jim Crow laws and expanded protections for voters of color across the South.
- In a dissent, Justice Elena Kagan argued that the majority opinion "threatens a half-century's worth of gains in voting equality."
- It could also boost the Republican majority in the U.S. House by an additional 19 seats when compared to 2024 maps.
What they're saying: "It's a day of loss for Black voters in Louisiana," Nelson said yesterday, adding that the Supreme Court prioritized "white grievance over racial injustice."
- Alanah Odoms, the executive director of the ACLU of Louisiana, told reporters it was an "abominable outcome" and the organization is in "very deep thought" about its next steps.
The intrigue: Lawmakers will likely redraw the map, potentially reducing the number of majority-Black districts.
- Odoms says the ACLU expects lawmakers to draw six majority-white districts or five majority-white and one majority-Black district.
What's next: State lawmakers could be called into a special session to redraw the map, while legal challenges are likely to continue.
2. 🥖 My go-to eats at Jazz Fest
👋 Carlie here. Jazz Fest is as much about the food as the music.
Why it matters: Go hungry to the Fair Grounds.
The big picture: I went to the fest last weekend and stuck to the classics. There are plenty of great dishes, but these were my favorites.
- Good news — you can get most of these year-round at the vendors' restaurants.
🐓 Bennachin's combo plate: The combination of jama jama spinach, plantains and chicken on a stick never misses. Find this combo at the French Quarter restaurant, too.
🐷 Love at First Bite's cochon de lait poboy: Meaty with a little punch from the mustard sauce. Walker's BBQ in the East sells it after fest season.
🥖 Anything from Vaucresson's: This is one of the original fest vendors. I love the plate lunches at the 7th Ward cafe.
🥭 WWOZ's mango freeze: Cold and sweet. This is usually the first thing I get at the fest.
🥤 Rosemint tea: I use this recipe from creator Sheila Owens to make the signature drink at home.
3. Fully Dressed: 🚔 Sheriff indicted
⚖️ Orleans Parish Sheriff Susan Hutson was indicted yesterday on 30 counts of malfeasance and other crimes related to last year's jailbreak. Bianka Brown, the department's CFO, faces 20 counts. (Press release)
- The two turned themselves in yesterday at the Jefferson Parish Correctional Center and were released after posting bond, JPSO says. They have court hearings at 9am today.
- It's Hutson's last week in office. Michelle Woodfork will be sworn in Monday.
🌂 New Orleans is in an extreme drought. The National Weather Service says we're 7.2 inches below normal rainfall so far this year. (U.S. Drought Monitor)
- About 94% of the state is in a drought. New data comes out today. Rain is in the forecast ... just in time for Jazz Fest.
🐦⬛ We can't stop watching this video of a crow attacking a reporter Uptown. The reporter (a friend) says she's OK. (The Times-Picayune 🔒)
📧 Carlie got one of the scammy party evites yesterday. Ah! It looked so real. Beware, y'all. Details.
🐣 Chelsea is on parental leave.
Tell a Crawfish Monica fan to subscribe.
Thanks to our editor Crystal Hill, who's reading about the role of Chinese restaurants in jazz history.
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