Democratic lawmakers in Albany will step in to redraw New York’s congressional map themselves, potentially setting up yet another court battle with Republicans that could help determine which party wins control of the U.S. House of Representatives in this year’s elections.
The Democratic-dominated state Legislature on Monday voted down a proposed map crafted earlier this month by the Independent Redistricting Commission, a bipartisan panel made up of lawmakers’ appointees.
“It seems the will of the conference is to reject those lines and get to work with our Assembly colleagues on some new proposals,” Senate Deputy Majority Leader Michael Gianaris (D-Queens) told reporters after Senate Democrats wrapped up a three-hour, closed-door meeting.
The vote clears the way for the Legislature’s Democratic majorities to make changes to New York’s 26 congressional districts before putting it to another vote later this week. Republicans have vowed to sue if the resulting map tilts more toward Democrats, arguing it would violate the state constitution’s ban on political gerrymandering.
The stakes are significant: Republicans have a razor-thin majority in the House, and even a minor shift in the New York lines could imperil their grip on power.
The commission’s proposal — approved by a 9-1 vote — would have made only modest changes to the state’s current congressional districts, which were drawn by a court-appointed expert after Republicans successfully sued to overturn a previous, Democrat-drawn map in 2022.
Under the commission’s map, Democrats would have only slightly benefited in their bid to retake control of the House of Representatives, with most swing districts seeing only minor tweaks, if any. There were only minor changes in New York City, centered in Brooklyn and Queens. The most notable change under that proposal would’ve been Democratic turf added to a key swing district in the Syracuse area, currently held by Republican Rep. Brandon Williams.
But…
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