A map showing the court-ordered congressional districts in much of upstate New York. The 24th Congressional District (in white) includes all of Cayuga County.Â
When voters approved a change to the New York State Constitution in 2014 over the process to be used in redrawing congressional and state legislative district maps, they did so with the best of intentions, but because the proposal was so badly flawed, it did not result in the kind of change anyone had hoped for. Unfortunately, the only thing to do now is to do it again before the 2030 U.S. Census. And it needs to be done right this time.
The ballot measure that created the 10-member state Independent Redistricting Commission resulted this year in two partisan sets of maps that were rejected by the Legislature, which then took over the process and did what the Democratic majority had wanted all along and created districts that favored Democratic candidates.
The whole exercise can only be described as a colossal failure of government. The politically appointed commission that was put in place failed to produce consensus maps as both parties dug in against the idea of any compromises. The Democratically controlled Legislature then conducted its own highly partisan process and put out maps that were blatantly gerrymandered. That resulted in the courts tossing everything and having one person with no historical knowledge of communities in New York state punching out district lines just after midnight on a Saturday.
And those are the lines New Yorkers are stuck with for the next decade.
The people deserve so much better, and the first step is getting legislation together for another state constitutional amendment — one that brings true independence to this process well ahead of 2032. The Legislature and governor must use the lessons of this year's redistricting mess to go back and establish a truly independent redistricting commission that has the power to draw fair lines in the future.
ÈËÊÞÐÔ½» Editorial board includes president and director of local sales and marketing Michelle Bowers, executive editor Jeremy Boyer and managing editor Mike Dowd.
Cayuga County is back in a central New York state Senate district but will be out of a Syracuse-area congressional district for the next 10 years.Â
A map showing the court-ordered congressional districts in much of upstate New York. The 24th Congressional District (in white) includes all of Cayuga County.Â
