Few Favor New Political Map For State
Good government advocates and Gov. Andrew Cuomo gave a thumbs down to the proposed realignment of Assembly and State Senate districts revealed last week by a joint legislative committee, charging that the plan reeks of political gamesmanship.
“The maps are unacceptable,” Cuomo was quoted as saying during the National Governors Association fund-raiser last Friday, Jan. 27, as reported by the Associated Press. “I think anyone who looks at the maps will see the political machinations. You don’t have to look that hard.”
Based on the governor’s statements, the current rezoning proposal- if passed by the Assembly and State Senate-would be “dead on arrival” the minute it reaches Cuomo’s desk, State Sen. Joseph Addabbo told the Times Newsweekly in a phone interview last Friday. This would likely lead to negotiations between the governor and the state legislature over a final redistricting map; if that fails, Addabbo noted, redistricting may ultimately be decided by the state courts.
“The window of opportunity to draw credible lines based on a credible panel is shrinking,” the senator said. “Once you have the lines drawn by the court, the opportunity to have a say in the process is diminished.”
Critics charged that the proposed maps were designed by the Legislative Task Force on Demographic Research and Reapportionment (LATFOR) to either maintain or expand the respective majorities in the state legislature. The Assembly is controlled by the Democrats, and Republicans have a 32-30 majority in the State Senate.
The State Senate district plan also includes the creation of a 63rd seat, which opponents claimed would not only boost the Republican majority but also tip the scales on potential legislative ties in their favor. Currently, the lieutenant governor-Democrat Robert Duffy-has the authority to cast a vote to break a 31-31 tie.
Democrats in the Senate filed a lawsuit on Tuesday morning, Jan. 31, in state Supreme Court to derail the redistricting proposal, calling plans for the Senate “blatantly unconstitutional.” The litigation also calls into question the proposed 63rd State Senate seat and a perceived lack of transparency throughout the entire redistricting process.
Forcing runoffs
Locally, two State Senate districts were gerrymandered to the point in which the incumbent Democrat state senator would be forced to run against an incumbent in a neighboring district.
The 12th State Senate District seat, which is currently held by Michael Gianaris and covers parts of Astoria, Long Island City, Sunnyside, Woodside, Maspeth and Ridgewood, was expanded to include sections of the 13th State Senate District seat occupied by Jose Peralta, including the lawmaker’s residence.
In another example, the 16th State Senate District seat held by Toby Ann Stavisky-which includes parts of Forest Hills, Rego Park and areas of northeastern Queens-was realigned to include the area occupied by Tony Avella’s 11th State Senate District. The map of the new district has been compared by some to resembling a lobster, with the “tail” end including parts of Elmhurst and Woodside and two “claw” areas stretching out over northeastern and central Queens.
Adding to the controversy is that such a plan would likely force a primary between Stavisky and Avella, who previously served as her chiefof staff.
Laughter and disappointment
Upon seeing the proposed new look of his 15th State Senate District seat, Addabbo told the Times Newsweekly that he “laughed.” The proposed district would move south to include Broad Channel and the western Rockaways; areas of Woodhaven, Ozone Park, Richmond Hill and Lindenwood near the Brooklyn/ Queens border currently within Addabbo’s district would be shifted to Gianaris’s 12th district, which is based in Astoria.
“It just shows how much of a flawed process it is,” he stated. “This is what we were trying to avoid when we signed the pledge” by New York Uprising, a good government campaign spearheaded by former New York City Mayor Ed Koch.
The pledge, which was signed by hundreds of lawmakers and candidates for public office across New York during the 2010 elections, called for the creation of an independent redistricting panel to draw Assembly, State Senate and Congressional district lines in a fair manner based on population, not politics.
Koch told The Associated Press that “so many legislators, and all of the Republicans led by their majority leader, reneged on their pledges. … To me, that’s the most disgraceful.”
“It doesn’t look like the committee took any of the testimony provided at previous public hearings [on redistricting] into consideration,” Addabbo added. “To just cut the people’s voice out is just wrong.”
Speak out on redistricting
Public hearings are scheduled to take place in the coming days regarding the redistricting plans put forth by LATFOR, but Addabbo noted that the hearings are scheduled to take during afternoon hours when most people are at work or school.
The Queens public hearing will be held this Tuesday, Feb. 7, at 3 p.m. at Queens Borough Hall, located at 120- 55 Queens Blvd., Room 213, in Kew Gardens.
Following every U.S. Census, New York State and all others across the U.S. are mandated to realign the district maps of Congressional and state legislative seats. The process in New York is controlled by the state legislature, and a plan must be passed and signed into law by the governor before the next federal election cycle following the census.
A redistricting plan for New York State must be in place prior to the Congressional primaries, which are reportedly scheduled to take place this year on June 26.
In the past, good government critics have stated that the redistricting process has been plagued by gerrymandering, in which legislative district boundary lines are drawn to the political benefit of parties involved in the process. One such example can be found in Forest Hills, which is covered by four different State Senate districts (Addabbo, Stavisky, Shirley Huntley and Malcolm Smith).
‘Pawns in gerrymandering’
The Woodhaven Residents Block Association (WRBA) condemned the proposed realignment of State Senate districts in their neighborhood in a press release issued on Jan. 30. Under the proposal, the neighborhood would be served by three different senators: Addabbo, Gianaris and Smith.
“LATFOR’s decision to split up a one-square-mile neighborhood among three different senators is bewildering and has no basis in the character, demographics, or needs of our community,” said Alexander Blenkinsopp, the WRBA communications director. “When it comes to the Senate lines, the people of Woodhaven are being treated as pawns in Albany’s gerrymandering games.”
“Woodhaven is a cohesive community with a clear identity. That’s why we’re pleased LATFOR drew an Assembly district that includes all of our neighborhood,” said WRBA Director Vance Barbour. “But the proposed Senate lines will dilute Woodhaven’s voice in the upper chamber of New York’s legislature and make it more difficult for fellow residents to know who’s representing them. Our neighborhood would become an orphan to three different senators, rather than a priority to one of them.”
