NEW YORK STATE –– On Wednesday, the New York State Court of Appeals threw out redistricting maps approved by the Democrat-led State Legislature earlier this year.

With maps needing to be redrawn, upcoming primaries are likely to be pushed back until August.

The now void maps had Sullivan County moving from the 19th to the 17th Congressional District, meaning that if re-elected in November, our  representative, as of January 1, 2023, would be Democratic incumbent Mondaire Jones not Antonio Delgado.

Also, Sullivan County would have been in the newly drawn   44th State Senate District, instead of the 42nd. In both cases, Republican incumbent NYS State Senator Mike Martucci, if re-elected in November, would represent Sullivan County.

There were also a few minor changes to the 100th NYS Assembly District, which included the Town of Fremont being moved to the 121st Assembly District.

The ruling

The Court of Appeals’ ruling referenced the state’s “historic” reforms of the redistricting process in 2014, which required the creation of electoral maps by an Independent Redistricting Commission (IRC) and declared certain “undemocratic practices” such as partisan and racial gerrymandering, unconstitutional.

“No one disputes that this year, during the first redistricting cycle to follow adoption of the 2014 amendments, the IRC and the legislature failed to follow the procedure commanded by the State Constitution,” the ruling states, adding that a “stalemate within the IRC resulted in a breakdown” in the mandatory process for submission of electoral maps to the legislature.

“The legislature responded by creating and enacting maps in a nontransparent manner  controlled exclusively by the dominant political party  — doing exactly what they would have done had the 2014 constitutional reforms never been passed,” the ruling states. 

“On these appeals, the primary questions before us are whether this failure to follow the prescribed constitutional procedure warrants invalidation of the legislature’s congressional and state senate maps and whether there is record support for the determination of both courts  below that the district lines for congressional races were drawn with an unconstitutional partisan intent,” the ruling further stated. “We answer both questions in the affirmative and therefore declare the congressional and senate maps void.”

The Court of Appeals added that judicial oversight is required to “facilitate the expeditious creation of constitutionally conforming maps for use in the 2022 election and to safeguard the constitutionally protected right of New Yorkers to a fair election.”

Democrats react

“The people of New York deserve fair and equitable Congressional districts that keep communities of interest together, so that they may elect Representatives who are responsive to their needs,” Congressman Jones told the Democrat. “It is my hope that the Special Master draws such districts based on the extensive testimony and documents New York’s Independent Redistricting Commission received months ago.

“The chaos surrounding redistricting throughout this country should serve as a reminder that a federal, nationwide ban on partisan gerrymandering is vital for our democracy,” Jones continued. “I’m proud to have played a critical role in authoring and passing the Freedom to Vote: John R. Lewis Act, which would do just that. It’s not too late for the [U.S.] Senate to act this Congress. I implore them to."

New York State Democratic Party Chairman Jay S. Jacobs said in a statement: “While we are disappointed with the Court’s ruling, we remain confident in Democratic victories up and down the ballot this November. While certain district lines may change, what does not change is our Party’s record of results which contrasts clearly with the Republican Party’s radical agenda to drag this state backward. New Yorkers always choose to move forward."

Republicans rejoice

On the other side of the aisle, New York State GOP Chairman Nick Langworthy said, “This was an outrageous, brazen attempt to rig the election and violate the constitutional rights of every citizen in this state and Democrats suffered the defeat they deserved. Next up, November."

Senator Martucci was one of the people who voted against the maps earlier this year.

“The decision by New York's highest court to strike down partisan gerrymandered congressional and state senate maps is a victory for justice and fair elections in New York State,” said Martucci. “I was proud to vote no on these maps because they did not follow the independent process that was approved—multiple times—by the citizens of our state; and, instead, were specifically designed to benefit one party and its candidates.

“This bipartisan court decision was on the merits and will allow for real competition when it comes time to vote,” continued Martucci. “I look forward to seeing the legal process conclude in a fair manner and, after that, running for re-election as a voice for all my potential constituents on the critical issues we’re facing.”