Some Central New York voters might once again need to familiarize themselves with a new congressional district map. New York’s Independent Redistricting Commission will meet Thursday to vote on a map which could set the tone for federal elections later this year.
Thursday's meeting will be open to the public, but Executive Director of Common Cause New York Susan Lerner says the state’s redistricting process has largely been conducted behind closed doors.
“The commission, which has held no meeting, after being charged with drawing a new congressional map, has announced that it’s going to meet on Thursday afternoon, and they’re going to vote on a map," Lerner said. "Nobody’s seen it, nobody’s made any comments about it, nobody has been able to provide feedback.”
The bipartisan panel has two weeks to agree on a map to send to New York’s Democrat-controlled legislature for final approval.
If they can’t agree on congressional lines, Lerner says the commission runs the risk of delaying this year’s primaries.
“If the maps aren’t settled and in the hands of the boards of elections to let candidates know where the boundary lines are, we could see a situation where the primary for congress is pushed back to August, which we think is not helpful to voters," Lerner said.
That’s exactly what happened in 2022, when a state court tossed out the old lines drafted by the state legislature and replaced them with the interim districts we know today.
New York’s congressional primary is set for June 25. Tomorrow’s commission meeting will be streamed at nyirc.gov starting at 2:00 p.m.