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On Monday, the New York State Legislature rejected a proposed redrawing of the U.S. congressional map by the Independent Redistricting Commission, with the Senate and Assembly voting 40-17 and 99-46 against it, respectively. The proposed map largely mirrored the one drawn by a court-appointed special master, which was used in the 2022 election. The following day, Democrats introduced their own map, which was passed by the Legislature on Wednesday by a 45-17 vote in the Senate and a 115-33 vote in the Assembly. Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul signed the new map into law hours later. It will govern elections through 2030, assuming there is no successful legal challenge.
Credit: Gov. Kathy Hochul / X [@GovKathyHochul]
According to Politico, the newly instated map slightly alters the political landscape, with Ryan’s district seeing a 0.4% increase in likely Democratic votes, and Molinaro’s district tipping 0.1% towards Republicans, maintaining electoral prospects for both candidates similar to those in the 2022 election.
Credit: The New York State Legislative Task Force on Demographic Research and Reapportionment
The map used in the 2022 election was part of a saga, in which special master Johnathan Cervas was appointed to draw the map by State Supreme Court Justice Patrick F. McAllister. After the election, a lawsuit filed by state Democrats resulted in the map being thrown out, and the Independent Redistricting Commission was ordered to draw another, subject to legislative approval. Rejected on Monday, the commission’s map was ultimately replaced by the map signed into law by Gov. Hochul on Wednesday.
Though the maps are similar to those used in 2022, a notable change is that Dutchess County residents will now share their district with the Democratic-leaning Ulster County communities of Saugerties and Woodstock. Columbia County residents will now share a district with the Republican-leaning towns of Ulster and Shawangunk.
Credit: The New York State Legislative Task Force on Demographic Research and Reapportionment
The commission’s rejected plan would have divided Orange County between the two incumbents, benefiting both. The new map keeps Orange County entirely in the 18th Congressional District.
Didi Barret, a Democrat who represents Assembly District 106, voted against the Independent Redistricting Commission’s map, then in favor of the one drawn by Democrats. “As a legislator, I prioritize listening to my constituents,” Assemblymember Barrett told the Herald. “My office heard overwhelmingly from constituents who asked me to reject the IRC congressional maps. They found that those maps were unbalanced and too often divided communities of interest when preserving communities of interest is in fact a constitutional requirement of redistricting.”
In a rare glimpse of bipartisan agreement, leadership from both parties released statements approving the new congressional map.
“Today, the State Legislature has adopted a bipartisan congressional map that more meaningfully delivers the type of fair representation that the people of New York State deserve,” said Rep. Hakeem Jeffries of New York, the House Democratic Leader, in a statement.
Chairman of the New York State Republican Committee Ed Cox released a statement suggesting state Republicans would not challenge Democrats over the new map. “These lines are not materially different from those drawn by the special master,” the statement read. “As such, there is no need for further litigation.”