A Baton Rouge judge struck down a challenge to new voting lines for the upcoming election in the 19th Judicial District Court.

Four candidates are vying to fill the vacancy left by former Chief Judge Wilson Fields, who left earlier this year to take a seat on the First Circuit Court of Appeal.

On Feb. 28, the day of Fields' departure, Gov. Jeff Landry declared a special election to be held Oct. 11 with a runoff, if necessary, on Nov. 15. The winner will finish out Fields’ term, set to end Dec. 31, 2026.

Registered voters in section 1, a subdistrict on the voting map, will select the new judge. The Legislature shook up those voting lines during the spring session, passing a House bill that revamped the judicial map.

Judges serving in the district court had been divvied up into three s

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