Citizens Redistricting Committee

​Just days after a U.S. District court judge ruled to intervene in New York state’s redistricting process, local political leaders in Upper Manhattan are calling for the legislature to redraw district lines to favor the local Dominican community’s voting power.

The 15th Congressional District, which includes some storied parts of Upper Manhattan such as Harlem and Washington Heights, is currently 46 percent Latino, according to the 2010 census. Redrawing district lines to create an even stronger Latino majority in the district would increase the chances that another Latino congressional candidate would be voted into office — but it also means stretching the limits of what is considered a “district” along vague geographical lines.

Read More: http://blogs.villagevoice.com/runninscared/2012/02/redistricting_c.php

Runnin’ Scared caught up with State Sen. Gustavo Rivera yesterday to hear his thoughts on the ongoing redistricting battles in Albany. He testified on Monday at a hearing on the matter (he wasn’t able to attend a Bronx redistricting hearing yesterday at the Bronx Museum of the Arts — which was open to the public).

When the new maps first came out last week, we managed to grab State Sen. Michael Gianaris who has been a loud critic of the process behind redistricting — where states redraw district boundaries based on Census population data every ten years.

Read More: http://blogs.villagevoice.com/runninscared/2012/02/state_senator_g.php

New Yorkers may want to ensure that they have fair representation in our fine democratic system, but sometimes it can be difficult to get jazzed up about the nitty-gritty of mapmaking. But new technology available this redistricting cycle is making it easier for advocates and academics to get involved in the process and present actual map representations that have clout. While the politics of redistricting continue (Gov. Andrew Cuomo has continued campaigning for an independent redistricting committee and the GOP is trying to assert its influence with a new Senate seat), advocacy groups across the state have been producing their own maps and sending them to Albany for consideration.

Read More: http://blogs.villagevoice.com/runninscared/2012/01/ny_redistrictin.php

As the political games of redistricting heat up this week, civil rights groups are staying focused on the prize: good maps. A coalition of advocacy groups teamed up yesterday and released what they call the “Unity Map,” which contains specific recommendations for Senate, Assembly, and Congressional districts that they argue will help give minority groups the strongest voice in the electoral process.

Read More: http://blogs.villagevoice.com/runninscared/2012/01/redistricting_unity_map_minority_voters.php

​This week, the redistricting drama continues. In case you forgot, redistricting is that complicated process every 10 years when states across the country redraw congressional and state legislative boundaries based on Census data.

Well, there’s been a lot of controversy in New York this time around about the way those lines are drawn and their impact on ethnic groups that live in the city — and new data to be presented next week could shake things up further. Next Tuesday in Albany, the state will discuss new stats about prisoner populations, which could have a meaningful impact on how lines are drawn and the campaigns of redistricting advocacy groups.

Read More: http://blogs.villagevoice.com/runninscared/2012/01/cuomo_redistricting.php