Republican lawmakers in Georgia passed a new U.S. House map for the state that largely preserves their electoral advantage after a federal judge tossed out the last electoral map in October.
The redistricting session came about after U.S. District Judge Steve Jones ruled that the prior Congressional map violates Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act, which states “No voting qualification or prerequisite to voting, or standard, practice, or procedure shall be imposed or applied by any State or political subdivision to deny or abridge the right of any citizen of the United States to vote on account of race or color.”
Judge Jones, an appointee of President Barack Obama, reached his determination after a group of plaintiffs argued that the prior map “dilutes” the weight of ballots cast by black voters across multiple Congressional districts. Judge Jones ruled that Georgia would have to create a new map that creates a new majority-black U.S. congressional district west of Atlanta and must do so without “eliminating minority opportunity districts elsewhere.”
The new Republican map does create a new majority-black U.S. congressional district west of Atlanta. But it also virtually eliminates the current minority-heavy 7th U.S. Congressional District represented by U.S. Rep. Lucy McBath, a Democrat.
Districting Fight Not Settled
Instead of targeting a Republican Congressional seat, the new Republican proposal shifts parts of Ms. McBath’s current district in suburban Gwinnett and Fulton counties into a district held by Republican U.S. Rep. Rich McCormick, stretching from Atlanta’s northern suburbs into its heavily Republican northern mountains.State Republicans contend the term “minority opportunity district” doesn’t clearly apply to districts in which there is no racial majority but rather a “coalition” of multiple racial minorities.
“This plan adds the required district; it complies with Judge Jones’ order,” said House Redistricting and Reapportionment Committee Chairman Rob Leverett, a Republican from Elberton. “It fulfills our obligation as a General Assembly with respect to congressional districts.”
Opponents of the new map say that a racial “coalition” actually does qualify as “minority opportunity districts” and the way Republicans reshaped District 7 therefore runs afoul of Juge Jones’ order that the new map not eliminate a minority opportunity district. Kareem Crayton, a redistricting researcher for the liberal Brennan Center for Justice, said proponents of the new map are wrongly interpreting the term “minority opportunity districts” to mean “only majority-Black districts.”
If Judge Jones does not approve of the new map, he could order a special master to redraw the map for the court instead.
“It looks like a virtual certainty that the special master will have the last say,” said Rep. Billy Mitchell, a Democrat representative in the state legislature.
“I intend to come back to Washington,” she said.