STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. — A looming court decision brought out a group of elected officials and political activists Monday to speak out against what they characterized as a possible gerrymander.
New York’s Court of Appeals, the state’s highest court, heard arguments Nov. 15 in a case that could send congressional district maps back to the drawing board after a contentious 2022 process.
Rep. Nicole Malliotakis (R-Staten Island/South Brooklyn) and Councilman Joseph Borelli (R-South Shore) joined the morning press conference outside City Hall to speak out against the possible redrawing of congressional district lines that benefitted New York Republicans in last year’s elections.
“Here we are again because Democrats are blatantly attempting to redraw the lines to tilt the scales to get their Democratic candidates an advantage in the 2024 elections,” the congresswoman said. “They’re trying to take back the power regardless of what the voters think.”
Last year, a Steuben County judge appointed Dr. Jonathan Cervas, of the Institute for Politics and Strategy at Carnegie Mellon University, to draw district lines for Congress and the state Senate — after state courts found Senate Democrats’ maps that Gov. Kathy Hochul approved were unconstitutional.
The maps Cervas produced put Republicans, including Malliotakis in a stronger position for the 2022 elections. For example, his map linked Staten Island, the city’s most conservative borough, with more like-minded parts of southern Brooklyn — giving Rep. Nicole Malliotakis (R-Staten Island/Southern Brooklyn) an advantage over her opponent, former Democratic Rep. Max Rose.
Malliotakis cruised to a cushy 24-point victory over Rose, who represented the district from 2018 to 2020, when he lost by a six-point margin.
An analysis from non-profit news organization THE CITY found that if the maps the state Senate drew remained in place — with Staten Island connected to more liberal Park Slope, Rose’s hometown —…
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