Posts Tagged ‘Politicker’
This afternoon, the Republicans controlling the New York State Senate filed their formal objection to the congressional redistricting plan currently being considered by a three-judge panel, and their arguments directly centered on the need for incumbency protection measures for Republican Representatives.
Earlier today, the courts dropped a small bombshell on New York’s Congressional delegation, releasing a “draft” map for the new set of districts. But what does that mean, and what happens next?
U.S. Magistrate Roanne Mann has given a deadline at 9 a.m. tomorrow for any parties to submit comments. She then has until Monday to submit her plan to a three-judge panel. That panel will then hold a hearing for the parties on March 15th and subsequently order a plan into effect.
Read More: http://www.politicker.com/2012/03/06/redistricting-what-happens-next/
The special master involved in redrawing New York’s Congressional districts released the court’s draft map this morning, and certainly not every incumbent is going to be pleased. And, unlike the proposals from the State Assembly and Senate majorities, this draft will likely contain far more legal weight as the process moves forward over the next week.
At first glance, the map appears to eliminate Congressman Bob Turner’s Queens-based seat and Upstate Congressman Maurice Hinchey’s one as well. The map additionally eliminates a Nassau County district, dismantling Rep. Gary Ackerman’s the most.
Read More: http://www.politicker.com/2012/03/06/special-master-releases-draft-congressional-maps/
Good government activists Common Cause sent an amicus letter today urging Roanne Mann, the special master charged with drawing the new Congressional lines, not to factor in incumbency when preparing the new maps.
“Common Cause understands that many incumbents may wish to persuade voters of the wisdom of returning them to Congress, where seniority and leadership positions may yield significant benefits for their districts,” the brief states. “Such an argument can and often is made in the context of campaigns, where the merits of such an argument can be weighed and either accepted or rejected by the voters at election time. We vigorously dispute the notion that the benefits of incumbency are so self-evident that incumbents should be aided by a thumb on the scale at the time of reapportionment.”
Over the last 48 hours, New York’s media, including The Politicker, has been breathlessly providing wall-to-wall coverage of the Senate Republicans’ and Assembly Democrats’ redistricting proposals, which were finally released around midnight last night. Candidates have been reacting strongly as well. One boldly declared a path to victory in last night’s maps, while another amazingly announced his intentions to buy a house in the new district.
However, the maps everyone is reacting to are not likely to relate at all to where the ultimate lines will fall.
Read More: http://www.politicker.com/2012/03/01/hey-guys-calm-down-about-last-nights-redistricting-stuff/
Ever want to draw your house into a new Congressional district? Well now you can.
As the redistricting battle between Albany and the courts moves forward this afternoon, the judge ruled the courts will accept and consider Congressional redistricting proposals submitted by the public.
Read More: http://www.politicker.com/2012/02/29/new-york-state-will-accept-your-redistricting-proposal/
The very first question Andrew Cuomo was asked at his Cabinet meeting this afternoon was in reference to an interview he gave with the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle in which he sounded like he was backing down from his threat to veto any lines drawn by lawmakers in the once-a-decade redistricting process.
Read more: http://www.politicker.com/2012/02/22/andrew-cuomos-redistricting-bind-reform-now-or-reform-later/
Governor Andrew Cuomo’s visit to the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle editorial board last Friday had appeared to settle the dust on whether would he sign or veto the new legislative boundaries. He was probably going to sign them, it surely seemed. However, this morning, his aides are insisting to the Daily News he’ll veto the maps.
Mr. Cuomo told the Democrat and Chronicle the “optimum you could have” is lines that are “less hyper political” and a promise to reform the process for when redistricting next occurs, ten years from now, via an amendment to the New York State Constitution.
Read More: http://www.politicker.com/2012/02/21/cuomo-on-redistricting-will-he-or-wont-he/
New York is one of the only states in the entire country to not even have its Congressional lines drafted, let alone passed. On Fred Dicker’s radio show this morning, the host asked Assemblyman Jack McEneny, one of the heads of the redistricting taskforce in Albany, why they have not presented congressional lines or held hearings on them like they’ve done for the state legislative lines.
“Because traditionally, we have always done the Senate and Assembly first. Didn’t do it the last couple times either,” Mr. McEneny responded.
Andrew Cuomo appeared on Fred Dicker’s radio show this morning and had some gentle teasing for the good government groups that have been decrying this year’s redistricting process.
“What people forget when they get all hyped up about it–the legislature has the legal authority to draw the lines. It is in the Constitution. The good government groups forget that when they do their tirade about how terrible the lines are,” Mr. Cuomo said over the audible snorts of Mr. Dicker. “Constitutionally the legislature has the right to do it.”
Read More: http://www.politicker.com/2012/02/16/cuomo-mocks-goo-goos-redistricting-tirades/
One of the more conspicuous map drawing tools available to majority parties during the once-a-decade redistricting process is placing legislators belonging to the minority party into the same districts. On Inside City Hall last night, Errol Louis asked Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos why so many Democrats suffered this fate. Mr. Skelos interestingly argued that a good government group’s redistricting proposal also drew incumbents together.
“Well, you want to remember, I believe Citizens Union did their plan. They did a so-called ‘non-partisan’ plan,” Mr. Skelos answered. “They had over 20 members of the assembly combined in districts and I think close to 10 in the senate.”
Mr. Skelos may have been referring to the map proposal put forward by a different good government organization, Common Cause New York. But the argument is a little strange, as Common Cause’s maps intentionally ignored incumbents and affected members of both the majority and minority parties, in sharp contrast with Albany’s proposal.
Earlier this morning, Ken Lovett reported one of the two Congressional districts New York State is destined to lose looks likely to be Nassau County Congresswoman Carolyn McCarthy, resulting in electoral implications across New York State.
Notably, because the seats are eliminated based on relative population loss, this would likely mean Congressman Bob Turner’s nearby Queens-based district is safe. Mr. Turner’s district had long been assumed to be on the chopping block, and Mr. Lovett’s report certainly makes Assemblyman Rory Lancman’s recently announced campaign efforts against Mr. Turner look far less foolhardy.
Read More: http://www.politicker.com/2012/02/09/congressional-redistricting-plan-begins-to-unfold/
The Democratic challenger for Brooklyn State Senator Marty Golden, Andrew Gounardes, wrote him a letter yesterday on redistricting, taking particular issue with a recent New York Post story suggesting Republicans in the State Senate were attempting to hold Governor Andrew Cuomo’s agenda hostage over the redistricting issue.
Read More: http://www.politicker.com/2012/02/08/gounardes-and-golden-tussle-over-redistricting/
Rappers are more often associated with bling and fancy cars than legislative maps and council resolutions, but one Queens hip hopper is melding his music with one of the city’s most hot button political issues–redistricting.
Read More: http://www.politickerny.com/2012/01/06/das-racist-rapper-joins-queens-redistricting-fight/
State Senator Mike Gianaris, who heads the Senate Democrats electoral efforts, was sharply critical of a plan Republican Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos floated yesterday, saying there’s a “good chance” the total number of New York State Senators will increase from 62 to 63 for the decennial process of redrawing district lines.
Senator Gianaris said that the “desperate” Republican conference was “brazenly violating the constitution.”
