KINGSTON — State legislators, the majority of them Democrats, will now vote on a proposed congressional district map but a regional lawmaker is already calling for the map to be scrapped.
State Sen. James Skoufis, D-Cornwall, said in a statement that the proposed 2024 map, devised by an Independent Redistricting Commission, should be rejected.
“After almost two years of hand-wringing and legal battling for a fair congressional map, the only thing bi-partisan about the Independent Redistricting Commission’s proposal is that both parties are seeking to protect their incumbents,” Skoufis said. “In fact, the most meaningful edit to the map sacrifices Orange County at the altar of partisanship, splitting the currently unified county congressional districts in an attempt to protect one incumbent from each party.”
“These maps are a disgrace and ought to be rejected by the Legislature,” Skoufis added.
Skoufis represents Orange County’s 42nd Senate district, which falls in the 18th Congressional District, currently represented by U.S. Rep. Pat Ryan, D-Gardiner.
In a statement, Democratic Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins said lawmakers would soon conduct their review.
“The Senate Majority is eager to review the proposed map submitted by the IRC,” Stewart-Cousins said. “We plan to discuss and decide our subsequent actions soon, taking into account the election cycle calendar.”
“This process is critically important and we are committed to concluding it in a manner that upholds fairness and democracy,” she added.
Assemblyman Chris Tague, R-Schoharie, was also not pleased with the new map.
“Now on our fourth set of congressional maps, the latest offering from the redistricting commission has become a glaring indictment of our state’s democratic leadership and the convoluted process at play,” said Tague, who represents the 102nd Assembly District. “While the maps seem to closely resemble those used in 2022, it’s important to note that despite having ample time for the seemingly straightforward task of establishing equitable boundaries, the Democrats’ missteps have prompted the intervention of an independent special master to achieve this goal.”
“As we near the final vote in the Legislature, I’ll be vigilantly monitoring the developments,” Tague added.
Assemblyman Brian Maher, R-Walden, who represents the 101st Assembly District, declined comment. Other regional lawmakers did not respond to inquiries about how they would vote on the map.
Ulster County will continue to be in the 18th and 19th Congressional Districts under the proposed redistricting map, but the districts will cover different towns, according to the map released Thursday, Feb. 15.
The New York State Independent Redistricting Commission voted 9-1 Thursday to send the newest map to the state Legislature for final approval.
In Ulster County, the proposed map for the 18th Congressional District would now include Olive, Woodstock, the town of Kingston, Hurley, Saugerties, and the town of Ulster, which are currently in the 19th district.
The 18th district is losing part of Wawarsing and Shawangunk and will keep the town of Rochester, Gardiner, Plattekill, Marlboro, the town of Lloyd, New Paltz, Marbletown, Rosedale, Esopus, and the city of Kingston.
Under the proposed map, available at nyirc.gov/congressional-plan-2024, the district loses a portion of Orange County and will continue to include all but the southeastern portion of Dutchess County.
For the 19th Congressional District, the new map for Ulster County now includes all of Wawarsing, including the village of Ellenville, and Shawangunk.
The district loses Olive, Woodstock, the town of Kingston, the town of Hurley, the town of Ulster, and Saugerties. It will retain Hardenburgh, Denning, and Shandaken.
Under the proposed map, the 19th district also retains all of Columbia and Greene counties but is losing all of Tioga County. The district gains a portion of Rensselaer County, all of Schoharie County and the rest of Otsego County and a portion of Orange County. It loses part of Cortland County but retains all of Delaware, Sullivan, Broome, Tompkins and Chenango counties.
The 19th Congressional District is represented by U.S. Rep. Marc Molinaro, R-Catskill.