Emergency application

Race in congressional maps

Q: What did the Supreme Court do in Phillip Callais v. Louisiana?

The Court granted the request on May 4, 2026. The Court approved (granted) the request: the Clerk will send its opinion and judgment to the district court immediately, not after 32 days. The order changes only when the lower court receives the judgment; it does not reconsider the Court’s earlier decision about Louisiana’s map. No vote count was published: Justice Alito and Justices Thomas and Gorsuch agreed with the result for different reasons (concurred); Justice Jackson disagreed (dissented).

Phillip Callais v. Louisiana

Granted

No. 25A1197Emergency applicationFiled by a private partyPresented to Justice AlitoFrom United States District Court for the Western District of Louisiana

What did the Court do?

The Court granted the request on May 4, 2026.

Emergency rulings are temporary and do not decide the underlying case. Justice Jackson would have ruled the other way.

Filed April 29, 2026Ruled May 4, 20265 days after filing

What's being asked

Phillip Callais and other private parties ask the Court to send its opinion and judgment to Louisiana's district court now, not after 32 days. The dispute concerns Louisiana's use of race to draw an additional congressional district where racial minorities form a majority. Callais and the other private parties say the map is an unconstitutional gerrymander.

What the Court did

The Court approved (granted) the request: the Clerk will send its opinion and judgment to the district court immediately, not after 32 days. The order changes only when the lower court receives the judgment; it does not reconsider the Court’s earlier decision about Louisiana’s map. No vote count was published: Justice Alito and Justices Thomas and Gorsuch agreed with the result for different reasons (concurred); Justice Jackson disagreed (dissented).

Concurred in a separate opinion
Dissented
Wrote separately
Vote not published

Concurring · 3agreed with the result, wrote separately: Thomasjoined Alito's writing
Alitowrote a concurrence
Gorsuchjoined Alito's writing
Dissenting · 1recorded against the Court's order: Jackson
Vote not published · 5the order does not say how they voted: Roberts
Sotomayor
Kagan
Kavanaugh
Barrett

The order records the positions of 4 of 9 justices. The Court usually does not say how each justice voted on an emergency application, so the rest are shown as not published.

Half of 82 rulings on applications where the Court asked for a response came 10 to 26 days after filing, and the median was 17 days; this one was ruled on 5 days after filing.

What it means

This temporary order is limited to timing, not who wins the underlying dispute: it sends the judgment now without changing the earlier map ruling. The U.S. District Court for the Western District of Louisiana may then oversee an orderly process, as the Callais parties requested. The docket lists no related merits case, and no argument was set.

Separate writings

Justice Alito, joined by Justice Thomas and Justice Gorsuch, concurring
May 4, 2026
Read (PDF)
A, dissenting
May 4, 2026
Read (PDF)

Sources

Facts on this page come from the Supreme Court docket, orders, and opinions for No. 25A1197. The answers restate that record in plain words; explainer copy is written from the record and the filings only.

Checked October 8, 2026

Docket timeline

Response requestedApr 29, 2026
Response to application (25A1197) requested by Justice Alito, due by 4 p.m. (EDT) on April 30, 2026.
Docket entryApr 29, 2026
Application (25A1197) of Phillip Callais, et al. to issue the judgment forthwith, submitted to Justice Alito.
Application (PDF)Proof of service (PDF)
ResponseApr 30, 2026
Response to application from Louisiana filed.
Response (PDF)
ResponseApr 30, 2026
Response to application from Press Robinson, et al. filed.
Response (PDF)Document 2 (PDF)
Docket entryApr 30, 2026
Letter of Press Robinson, et al. filed.
Document 1 (PDF)Document 2 (PDF)Proof of service (PDF)
Docket entryApr 30, 2026
Letter of Louisiana filed.
Document 1 (PDF)
Docket entryMay 1, 2026
Letter of applicant Phillip Callais, et al. filed.
Document 1 (PDF)Document 2 (PDF)Document 3 (PDF)Document 4 (PDF)Proof of service (PDF)
Referred to the full CourtMay 4, 2026
Application (25A1197) referred to the Court.
OrderMay 4, 2026
To permit the losing party time to file a petition for rehearing, the Clerk of Court ordinarily waits 32 days after the entry of the Court’s judgment to send the opinion and a certified copy of the judgment to the clerk of the lower court. Sup. Ct. Rule 45.3. This period is subject to adjustment; the default applies “unless the Court or a Justice shortens or extends the time.” <a href = 'https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/25pdf/25a1197_h31i.pdf'>Ibid.</i> The Callais appellees have asked for the Clerk to issue the judgment forthwith so that “in the event of a judicial remedy,” the District Court may “oversee an orderly process.” App. 3. Appellant Louisiana does not oppose this application. And while the Robinson appellants oppose it, they have not expressed any intent to ask this Court to reconsider its judgment. Thus, the application to issue the judgment forthwith presented to Justice Alito and by him referred to the Court is granted. Justice Alito, with whom Justice Thomas and Justice Gorsuch join, concurs. (Detached <a href = 'https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/25pdf/25a1197_097c.pdf'>Opinion</a>) Justice Jackson dissents. (Detached <a href = 'https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/25pdf/25a1197_h31i.pdf#page=4'>Opinion</a>)
5 days after filing
OrderMay 4, 2026
To permit the losing party time to file a petition for rehearing, the Clerk of Court ordinarily waits 32 days after the entry of the Court’s judgment to send the opinion and a certified copy of the judgment to the clerk of the lower court. Sup. Ct. Rule 45.3. This period is subject to adjustment; the default applies “unless the Court or a Justice shortens or extends the time.” Ibid. The Callais appellees have asked for the Clerk to issue the judgment forthwith so that “in the event of a judicial remedy,” the District Court may “oversee an orderly process.” App. 3. Appellant Louisiana does not oppose this application. And while the Robinson appellants oppose it, they have not expressed any intent to ask this Court to reconsider its judgment. Thus, the application to issue the judgment forthwith presented to Justice Alito and by him referred to the Court is granted. Justice Alito, with whom Justice Thomas and Justice Gorsuch join, concurs. Justice Jackson dissents.
5 days after filing
Order (PDF)Document 2 (PDF)

The case below

Ruling under review: United States District Court for the Western District of Louisiana, No. 3:24-cv-00122-DCJ-CES-RRS
Filings: The application (PDF)