Federal court draws NY congressional map

By Josh Lederman - 03/19/12 08:08 PM ET

A panel of federal judges put in place a court-drawn map for New York's congressional districts on Monday, blasting state lawmakers as derelicts who have failed to fulfill their obligations.

New York lost two congressional districts after the 2010 census due to slow population growth, forcing the legislature to redraw the maps and eliminate two seats. But the Democratic-controlled state Assembly and GOP-controlled state Senate deadlocked for months, unable to agree on a proposal for where the new lines should sit.

A federal court intervened in early March, urging lawmakers to break through their gridlock while developing a contingency plan of its own. With a June 26 primary rapidly approaching, a panel of three federal judges decided it had waited long enough, and on Monday adopted its own map.

"In prior redistricting challenges, New York has avoided such a wholesale transfer of state legislative power to the federal courts through last-minute enactments of new redistricting plans," the judges wrote in their decision. "In this case, however, New York has been willing to let even the last minute pass and to abdicate the whole of its redistricting power to a reluctant federal court."

The court eliminated the district of Rep. Maurice Hinchey (D-N.Y.), whose decision to retire made his seat the low-hanging fruit for redistricting. It also dismantled Rep. Bob Turner’s (R-N.Y.) district, reshuffling the lines on Long Island and pushing other area congressmen closer to Queens.

Reacting to the prospect of being drawn out of a district, Turner announced last week that he would run instead for the Senate against Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.). Meanwhile, Rep. Gary Ackerman (D-N.Y.), whose district was altered but left intact, announced he would retire, creating an open seat that several Democrats have already stepped forward to fill.

In upstate New York, Reps. Kathy Hochul (D) and Charles Gibson (R) were both hit with new districts that will be more difficult to win.

Democrats in Washington declared the new map a win for the party, dismissing concerns about Hochul by arguing that her appeal to independents and centrist Republicans will allow her to weather the storm.

"The new congressional map for New York ensures that there is now no such thing as a safe Republican seat in New York," read a memo released Monday by the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. "Across the entire state, President Obama would have won or tied 25 out of the 27 districts."

Minor changes were made to the court-drawn map between its initial release and its formal adoption on Monday.