Dems get minor boost in new proposed NY congressional map

New York’s new, long-awaited congressional map may end up looking a lot like the current map — unless Democratic state lawmakers decide to push their luck.

The state Independent Redistricting Commission reached a consensus Thursday on a plan to make only modest changes to New York’s 26 congressional districts, largely leaving New York City and Long Island districts alone while giving Democrats a boost in a key swing district in the Syracuse area.

The redistricting panel’s Democrat- and Republican-aligned members voted 9-1 on the proposal in a rare moment of bipartisanship in Albany that contrasted sharply with the panel's deadlock two years ago. But whether the map is put in place now depends entirely on the Democrat-dominated state Legislature.

If Democratic lawmakers reject the proposal and decide to make their own changes to the map, Republicans say they’re prepared to sue — which could upend New York’s political calendar and throw its long redistricting saga back to the courts for the third time in two years.

The changes could have significant national implications: Republicans hold a razor-thin majority in the House of Representatives, and both parties are fighting for any advantage they can get.

New York's House delegation currently comprises 16 Democrats and 10 Republicans.

So far, legislative leaders in Albany aren’t giving any hints on how they’ll proceed with the proposed map.

“We will review the map and discuss it with our members to determine next steps,” said Mike Whyland, a spokesperson for Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie, a Bronx Democrat.

“We plan to discuss and decide our subsequent actions soon,” said Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins, a Democrat from Yonkers.

The commission’s only major proposed change comes in Central New York, where Republican Rep. Brandon Williams’ district would shift west to pick up the village of Auburn, a Democratic stronghold. Williams is a first-term representative and a major target for congressional Democrats.

There were no changes on Long Island, which is home to four battleground districts.

In the Hudson Valley, Democratic Rep. Pat Ryan’s district would pick up Democratic-leaning areas like Woodstock and Saugerties in Ulster County, while ceding some Republican areas in Orange County to Republican Rep. Marc Molinaro — bolstering both incumbents. Republican Rep. Michael Lawler’s district in the Hudson Valley — one of the top battleground districts in the House — would have a hardly noticeable tweak.

There are a variety of minor tweaks in Brooklyn and Queens districts, such as Citi Field moving from Bronx Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez's district to Queens Rep. Grace Meng's, but no significant changes under the proposal.

All of the districts in Manhattan, Staten Island and the Bronx would remain entirely intact, including Bronx Rep. Jamaal Bowman’s largely Westchester County-based district, which remains entirely unchanged under the commission’s proposal. Westchester County Executive George Latimer is challenging Bowman in a Democratic primary.

The Democratic chair of the redistricting commission is Ken Jenkins, Latimer’s deputy county executive. Jenkins said he and Latimer only spoke of the commission’s process, not about the substance of the maps.

“The process was not without its challenges, but I’m proud to say we worked cooperatively and collaboratively on those challenges,” Jenkins said during Thursday’s commission meeting.

While the commission's Republican Vice Chair Charles Nesbitt acknowledged that each member of the panel has some misgivings about the map, he called it “something New Yorkers can be proud of.”

The new map is the product of extended legal wrangling between Democrats and Republicans stretching back to 2022, when the redistricting commission deadlocked and Democratic lawmakers stepped in to draw their own congressional map for the state.

The Democrat-drawn map heavily favored Democratic candidates, with President Joe Biden winning 22 of the 26 districts. Republicans sued and won, successfully arguing Democrats unconstitutionally gerrymandered the map and didn’t follow the proper process.

A court-appointed special master then stepped in, drawing new congressional boundaries that were put in place for the 2022 elections — when Republicans picked up several seats in New York that allowed them to retake control of the House.

That helped lead to a new lawsuit last year, in which Democrats argued that the constitution calls for the redistricting commission to get a second crack at drawing the congressional map. They won, clearing the way for Thursday’s vote.

Under the state’s redistricting process, the state Legislature will now have to vote on the commission’s proposed map as is — without any changes.

If lawmakers vote down the commission’s proposal, the Legislature’s Democratic majorities will get to draw new maps and put them to a vote, though they’ll be restricted to making changes that alter no more than 2% of the population in any given district.

If that happens, Republicans are almost certain to sue if they believe lawmakers made changes designed to benefit the Democratic Party. The state constitution’s anti-gerrymandering clause prohibits drawing political boundaries to benefit a particular candidate or party.

"If the Democrats in the Legislature can't help themselves but to play more hyperpartisan games to circumvent the law and constitution, this is only going to end up right back in court,” said Lee Zeldin, the Republicans’ 2022 nominee for governor.

It’s unclear when the Legislature will put the map to a vote. Lawmakers aren’t scheduled to return to the state Capitol until Feb. 26, the day before the petitioning period to get on the June primary ballot is scheduled to begin.

Stewart-Cousins left open the possibility of calling lawmakers back to Albany next week to vote in her remarks to reporters on Tuesday.

“The reality is you’ve got to give it [the proposed map] some time to be out in the public sphere,” she said.

Shortly after the commission released its proposed map, state Sen. James Skoufis, an Orange County Democrat, issued a statement railing against the proposal for splitting his home county between districts — a move, he said, that was designed to protect Molinaro and Ryan.

“These maps are a disgrace and ought to be rejected by the Legislature,” he said.

This story was updated to include additional information about the changes proposed to the congressional districts in Brooklyn and Queens, as well as a map of the proposal.