Maryland lawmakers are set to consider a partisan redistricting initiative that could help Democrats pick up an additional U.S. House seat by 2028. The General Assembly will begin debate on a proposed constitutional amendment intended to give Democrats greater latitude to draw congressional maps favoring their party.
Background
The proposal would have to be approved by voters before lawmakers could begin considering new district lines. Maryland’s lone Republican representative in Congress, Rep. Andy Harris, has expressed concerns that the move would lead to gerrymandering and disenfranchise rural voters.
Democratic state Senate President Bill Ferguson blocked a different redistricting initiative earlier this year, but has said his views shifted after the U.S. Supreme Court weakened the Voting Rights Act in late April. Gov. Wes Moore, a Democrat, has expressed frustration over lawmakers’ refusal to redistrict earlier this year and has cast the move as an urgent necessity in light of Republican moves elsewhere.
National Implications
Maryland’s special session is part of a new phase in a national redistricting battle that began a year ago. Republicans think they could win as many as 16 additional seats from new House maps enacted in eight states, while Democrats think they could win up to six additional seats from new districts in California and Utah.
Original reporting: KTBS 3 (Shreveport) — read the source article.
