In win for Democrats, Arizona redistricting commissioner reinstated

Arizona's Supreme Court reinstated the independent redistricting commissioner Republicans had voted to remove, giving Democrats a win for both short-term political messaging and for drawing the House redistricting map for the next decade.

The state has a bipartisan, independent redistricting commission that draws the lines, and Republicans were angry that the independent member of the commission voted with Democrats on the final map. The Republicans voted to remove her, a move that by law is supposed to be reserved for law-breakers, in hopes they could get a map that would give them more Republican-leaning House seats.

The move set off a furor in a state that has had many tense partisan battles including the fight over Arizona Republicans' strict immigration law. Gov. Jan Brewer (R), who initially resisted the removal only to fight for it later, was slammed in newspapers around the state for the blatantly partisan move.

The state supreme court's decision that Brewer did not meet the constitutional requirements for removing a commissioner will reinforce the views held by some in the state that Republicans crossed the line on this issue.

The long-term impact of the decision is the map initially passed by the commission is likely to stand. The map was a win for Democrats: It makes already-vulnerable freshman Republican Rep. Paul Gosar's district more Democratic, makes Democratic Rep. Gabrielle Giffords' swing district more Democratic, and creates a new district in Phoenix that could be winnable for Democrats.

This means each party has a roughly equal shot at holding an edge in the state's delegation despite Arizona's slight Republican lean — Republicans currently hold a 5-3 advantage in House seats. With the fast-growing Hispanic population, demographics could keep pushing the Arizona towards a more purple hue.

---