ATLANTA — Georgia’s General Assembly opened a special session Wednesday to redraw the state’s legislative and congressional districts after a federal judge ruled the current maps violate federal law.
Republican leadership in both the House and Senate have introduced new maps they say will bring Georgia in compliance with federal law by adding several new majority-Black districts.
In a 516-page October ruling, U.S. District Judge Steve Jones ruled that the legislative maps Georgia’s General Assembly passed in 2021 violated Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 and illegally diluted black voters.
The judge gave Georgia until Dec. 8 to redraw the maps.
“We believe this plan is better than what was proposed by the plaintiffs in the litigation, and it complies with the order. But the ripple effect in any plans is real and when we put in these new districts we have to adjust going out,” state Rep. Rob Leverett said.
Leverett is Chairman of the House Redistricting Committee. His proposal creates five new Black majority districts but alters 56 districts to do that.
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Eight incumbents are being redistricted into districts with other members under the proposal. All but two of those are Democrats.
“What we are seeing is that the maps offered by the committee chairs so far appear to comply with the basics of adding Black majority districts but there are clearly attempts to even the score from a partisan perspective,” Ken Lawler from Fair Districts Georgia said.
Republican state Senate leadership also introduced new district maps that would add two majority Black senate districts. Some 15 Senate districts would be shifted, all in metro Atlanta.
Democrats are critical of the new Republican maps that attempt to limit the loss of GOP seats.
While it’s illegal to gerrymander based on race, it is not illegal to gerrymander by party.
“Fair maps are essential for maintaining the integrity of our Democratic process ensuring that every voice, every voice of color is heard throughout the state of Georgia. Their votes do count,” state Rep. Carl Gilliard said.
Gilliard is the Democratic chair of the General Assembly’s Black caucus.
We expect to see the proposals for what the new Congressional map could look like later this week.
Jones has to sign off on whatever redistricting plan the General Assembly passes.
In neighboring Alabama, a judge rejected new maps created by the legislature there and the court instead appointed an outside special master to draw the districts.
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