Abate said that the state often pointing out unfairness of previously-drawn maps by Democrats was a weak defense of the current, GOP-drawn maps. This opinion was joined by Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Anthony Kennedy. Voss said that Caughey and Imais projections dont take into account the political geography of Kentucky and that they assume presidential and statewide voter preferences predict legislative preferences. Instead, he agreedwith the arguments made in a hearing before him last week from the office of Attorney General Daniel Cameron that doing so would create electoral "chaos. Marketa Vondrousovas lifts her to No. Pope Francis peace envoy is traveling to Washington as part of the Holy Sees peace initiatives for Ukraine. The override vote was 64-24 in the state House, with all votes in favor by Republicans and 21 Democrats and three Republicans voting to sustain Beshears veto. The plaintiffs claimed that the commission placed a disproportionately large number of non-minority voters in districts dominated by Republicans; meanwhile, the commission allegedly placed many minority voters in smaller districts that tended to vote Democratic. According to Article I, Section 4 of the United States Constitution, the states and their legislatures have primary authority in determining the "times, places, and manner" of congressional elections. In 1964, the United States Supreme Court ruled in Wesberry v. Sanders that the populations of House districts must be equal "as nearly as practicable. Each state is allotted a portion of these seats based on the size of its population relative to the other states. In 2020, I worked across party lines with Gov. The court ruled 8-0 on April 4, 2016, that a state or locality can use total population counts for redistricting purposes. The Kentucky Democratic Party announced Thursday it's suing over congressional and state legislative redistricting maps the commonwealth's Republican-run legislature approved earlier this month. Attorneys for the Democrats argued the new state House map splits counties too many times, the Lexington Herald-Leader reported. Beshear accused the state GOP of gerrymandering They asked that the new maps be temporarily blocked. That legislation had passed the state Senate on January 6, 2022, 28-4, and the state House on January 8, 2022, 67-23. 2 Novak Djokovic in the Wimbledon final. Kentucky was apportioned six seats in the U.S. House of Representatives. April 11, 2022 1:55 PM The new U.S. Congressional District map includes dramatic changes to the states 1st Congressional District, occupied by James Comer. TheHill.com. Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. [6][7][8], Senate Bill 3 was introduced in the Kentucky State Senate on January 4, 2022. ", These maps were drawn behind closed doors with no public input to silence the voices of hundreds of thousands of Kentuckians, Elridge said in a press release. Andy Beshears (D) veto of the plan. The maps were drawn to punish and diminish Democratic voters influence by using their past voting patterns to select Democratic-leaning precincts and specifically pair them with other areas that would more than cancel out their voting power, the suit said. Featured, Briefs | State Democracy Research InitiativeOn July 11, the State Democracy Research Initiative submitted an amicus brief on behalf of Professor Joshua A. Douglas of the University of Kentucky Rosenberg College of Law in a redistricting lawsuit pending before the Kentucky Supreme Court, Graham v. Adams. The burden shifts to the State to prove that its race-based sorting of voters serves a 'compelling interest' and is 'narrowly tailored' to that end." In addition, county lines and communities of interest should be maintained if possible. When used in a rhetorical manner by opponents of a particular district map, the term has a negative connotation but does not necessarily address the legality of a challenged map. On May 25, 2021, Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost (R) announced that the state had reached a settlement agreement with the Census Bureau in its lawsuit over the Census Bureau's timetable for delivering redistricting data. All Rights Reserved. ", According to the judge's order,throwing out the maps of House Bill 2 and Senate Bill 3, pushing back the filing deadlines and perhaps delaying the primary election date would not be in the public interest andcould "throw the election process into disarray" and create "utter chaos.". Attorneys for the Democrats argued the new state House map splits counties too many times, the Lexington Herald-Leader reported. UK election law expert weighs in. Im very, very confident that the map will withstand any challenge, Osborne said. More than half the worlds population sees AP journalism every day. Beshear's vetoes of the congressional and state house redistricting plans. Israeli president to address Congress as Democratic divisions over Israel break out, GOP and FBI are at odds as Republicans move to stop the agencys new headquarters after Trump probes, GOP senators rattled by radical conservative populism. ", Elridge said the maps intentionally slice up cities and counties, specifically to reduce the number of women serving in the House and "dilute the voices of minority communities. See the sections below for further information on the following topics: This section lists major events in the post-2020 census redistricting cycle in reverse chronological order. NY Court Orders Redistricting Commission to Draw a Second Congressional Map, ELB Podcast: U.S. Democracy and the Independent State Legislature Theory after Moore v. Harper, U.S. Supreme Court Rejects Exclusive Power of State Legislatures to Draw Redistricting Maps in NC Case. Kentucky politics: Critics say Kentucky House GOP's redistricting plan targets women, protects incumbents. In 2010, 12 states in which legislatures had authority over redistricting saw shifts in trifecta status. She and two Republicans who had filed for that seat were drawn out of the district, leaving only Republican Lexington councilwoman Amanda Mays Bledsoe. Beshear to ensure a smooth election. WebThis section provides overviews of lawsuits challenging redistricting maps that were filed after Kentucky enacted maps for the 2020 redistricting cycle. [22], On August 23, 2013, the state legislature approved revised state legislative district maps, which were signed into law by the governor on the same day.[22]. The order called for the parties to appear before the court March 1 for a full hearing on the merits of the Democrats' lawsuit and to present any expert testimony on the constitutionality of the maps. ", The General Assemblys focus in creating these district maps wasnt representation or democracy or even legality their focus was on partisan politics, which is why they unnecessarily sliced up so many counties, said plaintiff Joseph Smith. Federal judges blocked both laws on June 28 in response to the lawsuits. Kentuckys newly drawn and legislature-approved statehouse and congressional district maps are being argued in court. Attorneys for the attorney generals office argue the maps follow the law, back up previous court decisions, and the maps, particularly the congressional maps. In three days of hearings before Wingate, the plaintiffs argued that the maps were uniquely unfair to Democrats as well as the people of Franklin County and that the House map excessively split counties. It is not the final word, and we remain optimistic that with a full briefing we will achieve a positive result.. FRANKFORT, Ky. (LEX 18) Franklin Circuit Court Judge Thomas D. Wingate has denied a motion to temporarily block Kentucky's redistricting maps. FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) Kentuckys newly drawn congressional and state House maps drew a swift court challenge Thursday as GOP lawmakers overrode the Democratic governors vetoes of the redistricting bills. Judge Wingate did not say when a decision would be made on an injunction but said he hoped to have the case resolved by the middle of March. By Bruce Schreiner and Published 5:30 PM PDT, January 20, 2022 FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) Kentuckys newly drawn congressional and state House maps drew a swift court challenge Thursday as GOP lawmakers overrode the Democratic governors vetoes of the redistricting bills. Beshear vetoed Senate Bill 3 the congressional redistricting legislation on January 19, 2022. Beshear allowed the redistricting proposal for new state Senate districts to become law without his signature on January 21, 2022. Redistricting in Kentucky came to a head last week after the Governor vetoed congressional and State House district maps passed by the Republican legislature (the senate map was not vetoed or signed by the governor and were enacted automatically). Lawsuit calls new Kentucky redistricting maps a geographical absurdity (wdrb.com), See you in court: the legal battle over drawing lines this week on Capitol Chat (wuky.org), Are Kentuckys redistricting maps gerrymandered? They brought forth two expert witnesses from Harvard and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) who ran analyses that purport to show both of those deficiencies. The case considers whether the Kentucky Constitution prohibits partisan gerrymandering of state legislative and congressional districts. All briefs and conclusions are due on June 15, Wingate said at the hearings close on Thursday. All rights reserved. The Kentucky Democratic Party filed a lawsuit challenging the recently enacted redistricting maps and partisan gerrymander and county-splitting grounds. "[17] Steve Rogers of WTVQ wrote that, "During debate on the legislative districts, especially the 100 House districts, Democrats objected that the GOP-drawn map unfairly split urban areas to the benefit of Republicans. Public officialsin both parties reactedto the orders with vindication, focusing on the denial of their opponent's motion rather than their own. Breaking down the objections and complaints about the GOPs plan. Andy Beshear (D) vetoed the state's congressional district planSenate Bill 3on January 19, 2022. The lawsuit only challenges the House and U.S. Congressional District maps, not the State Senate. On July 11, the State Democracy Research Initiative submitted an amicus brief on behalf of Professor Joshua A. Douglas of the University of Kentucky Rosenberg College of Law in a redistricting lawsuit pending before the Kentucky Supreme Court, Graham v. Adams. Andy Beshears (D) veto of legislation establishing the state new congressional map. Get hyperlocal forecasts, radar and weather alerts. The number of seats in the United States House of Representatives is fixed at 435. A federal judge ruled Friday that Kentucky can enforce its state law which prohibits sex change treatments for minors, according to Reuters. [13] This data was compiled by Daily Kos Elections. Why else would I, a Franklin County resident, be sorted into the same congressional district as Paducah? Andy Beshear's veto of the maps. The 12th Senate District changed significantly in the latest round of redistricting. The majority opinion was penned by Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Now the Welsh soccer team is on its way to Tinseltown. State executives | Kentucky Democrats have filed a lawsuit challenging redistricting plans by GOP lawmakers that were vetoed by Gov. Just as Governor Beshears vetos of the new maps were being overridden, and effectively made law, a legal challenge was made. How to vote | Please donate here to support our continued expansion. And even consistent policies that cause a 1 percent spread from largest to smallest district will likely be unconstitutional. A legacy format presents the data in raw form, without data tables and other access tools. Wingate expressed interest at the Feb. 10 hearing about the analysis, also commenting that it seemed "bizarre" that Kentucky's First Congressional District now extends from far-western Kentucky to Franklin County. Moving Franklin County out of the 6th would likely turn the traditional swing district increasingly red. The court's opinion, penned by Chief Justice John Roberts, did not address the broader question of whether partisan gerrymandering claims are justiciable and remanded the case to the district court for further proceedings. At the time of the 2010 redistricting cycle, Republicans controlled the state Senate and Democrats held the state House and the governorship. District lines are redrawn every 10 years following completion of the United States census. The lawsuit claimed the boundaries approved by the Republican-dominated legislature reflected extreme partisan gerrymandering in violation of the state constitution. The Kentucky Democratic Party filed a lawsuit challenging the recently enacted redistricting maps and partisan gerrymander and county-splitting grounds. Gov. [56][57][58][59], Harris v. Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission was a case decided by the Supreme Court of the United States in 2016. WebMaps General Assembly and Congressional Redistricting Maps 2022 Redistricting 2013 Redistricting 2012 Redistricting 2002 Redistricting 1996 Redistricting County Maps Kentucky Counties (b/w) Kentucky Counties (color shaded) Kentucky Counties with Kentucky adopted new congressional district boundaries on January 20, 2022, after the general assembly overrode Gov. So, what will happen if these new maps are blocked? Similar laws are being challenged in courts across the country; in Arkansas, an Obama-appointed judge blocked a state law that banned sex change procedures for children including surgeries, puberty blockers and hormones. The Kentucky Supreme Court affirmed the trial court's ruling on February 24, 2012. Public policy. State and local courts | Noting the high probability that the losing party in his judgment will appeal the case up to the Court of Appeals or Supreme Court, Wingate said "this is Franklin Circuit Courteverything goes up.". Get the best experience and stay connected to your community with our Spectrum News app. "Now I urge his party to act in good faith to ensure a smooth election in 2022 by dropping this reckless lawsuit., In his statement, Cameron called the new redistricting maps "clear, constitutional, and workable," butsaid Democrats wantthe court "to reverse more than a century of precedent and move toward a system where our electoral maps are drawn by computers managed by Ivy League faculty.