Topline
A New York judge on Thursday struck down the state's new congressional and legislative maps over Republican complaints the maps put the GOP at an unfair disadvantage, sending the Democratic-controlled state legislature back to the drawing board.
Key Facts
The state legislature approved the maps in February and Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) quickly approved them, but Republicans launched a legal challenge, claiming Democrats engaged in gerrymandering to dilute GOP power.
According to FiveThirtyEight, the new map would have created three more Democratic-leaning seats, while removing three Republican-leaning seats and one highly competitive seat.
Acting New York Supreme Court Judge Patrick McAllister, who is conservative, gave the state legislature until April 11 to come up with "bipartisanly supported maps" or the court will hire a "neutral expert at State expense to prepare said maps."
Key Background
The redistricting process around the country has been rife with allegations of gerrymandering, both from Republicans and Democrats. Maps of at least 14 other states are still in litigation, while four states still haven't completed maps, according to FiveThirtyEight. Maryland is among the states that haven't completed a map and its lawmakers are in a similar position to New York's, after a state judge last week tossed a Democratic-proposed map for "extreme party gerrymandering."
Contra
Louisiana on Wednesday became the latest state to approve a new congressional map, with the legislature overruling Gov. John Bel Edwards' (D) veto, after the governor argued the map from the GOP-controlled legislature did not adequately represent the state's Black population. The move was the first successful veto override in Louisiana in 31 years. Republican-controlled legislatures in several Southern states have been accused of drawing maps that dilute Black populations, which traditionally vote Democratic.
