Parent Press: Redistricting Process and Maps
Here is an update on the maps passed during the Redistricting Special Session. The Senate District and House District maps have been passed by both chambers and are headed to the Governor for signature. The Congressional map was passed by the Senate yesterday and is now in the House. The House passed the maps through committee after hearings today, and is expected to pass the bill on Monday.
Redistricting Process and Maps
These maps are gerrymandered
They were designed by Republicans to protect their majority for the next 10 years.
Gerrymandering goes hand in hand with voter suppression to subvert the will of the people and protect the party in power.
And many districts are less competitive, which leads to further polarization, as legislators only need to please their base.
Furthermore, these maps targeted districts represented by two women of color - passed by the Senate Redistricting committee Republican members, nine white men, and by the Republicans in the Senate with only two female members.
Senator Michelle Au, the only Asian-American Woman in the Senate representing SD 48. The minority voting age population of her district was reduced by 15%, making it lean Republican.
Representative Lucy McBath – CD 6 had over 45% of its population swapped despite only needing 657 voters moved out, eliminating DeKalb from this district entirely and including 2 Republican strongholds outside Metro Atlanta.
I voted NO on these maps, and in fact no Democrat voted for these maps.
The maps don't reflect how Georgia has changed
Georgia’s population grew by 1 million residents – 100% people of color and 100% in urban areas, mostly Metro Atlanta.
And Georgia is likely now a majority-minority state. Yet the maps that passed do not reflect this diversity.
In 2020, this changing population of Georgia elected Democrats in 3 statewide races. Georgia is a 50-50 state.
The Congressional map is 9R-5D and gives Republicans a 64% majority - one more seat than they have today. It does not add even one minority-opportunity district, despite all the population increase coming from people of color, and reduces the number of competitive districts to zero.
The Senate map is likely a 33R- 23D split. giving Republicans a 60% majority, and only contains 20 districts in which minorities are a majority (36%). This map was rated an 'F' by the Princeton Gerrymandering Project overall and for partisan fairness.
The House map would likely have a 97R- 83D split. While giving up 5 or 6 seats to the Democrats, it strengthens Republican majorities in the remaining seats, solidifying their majority.
Learn more about each of these maps in my town hall with Representative Matthew Wilson
This Republican controlled process was not transparent
The maps were submitted at the last minute, in some cases hours before hearings were held, and none of the maps got more than a few days of consideration.
This gave insufficient time for legislators or the public to analyze and understand the changes in these maps.
The public portal created to accept comments was hard to find, lacked search and reporting functions, and it is unclear whether these comments were used at all.
There was no time or effort to incorporate concerns or ideas from the public or Democrats – even to correct identified errors in the House map.
See my Comments about the Congressional Maps on the Senate Floor
Click here to see the maps or submit a comment
Run-Off Elections Nov 30
If you live in the City of Atlanta boundaries, the Runoff Election is on Nov 30.
After consultation with trusted individuals and elected officials, I have made the decision to support Andre Dickens for Mayor. I still have enormous respect for Felicia Moore. I have also announced my support for Liliana Bahktari (City of Atlanta Council District 5) and Tamara Jones (Atlanta Board of Education District 7).
Here is a full list of Atlanta Runoffs:
City of Atlanta Mayor
Andre Dickens v. Felicia Moore
City of Atlanta Council President
Natalyn Archibong v. Doug Shipman
City of Atlanta District 3 at-large
Jacki Labat v. Keisha Waites
City of Atlanta District 1
Nathan Clubb v. Jason Winston
City of Atlanta District 3
Byron Amos v. Erika Estrada
City of Atlanta District 4
Jason Dozier v. Cleta Winslow
City of Atlanta District 5
Liliana Bakhtiari v. Mandy Mahoney
City of Atlanta District 7
Antonio Lewis v. Joyce Sheperd
Atlanta Board of Education District 2
Aretta Baldon v. Keisha Carey
Atlanta Board of Education District 7
Tamara Jones v. Kanesha Venning
There are Runoffs in Tucker and Stonecrest as well.
Early Voting Continues through this Wednesday, Nov 24
Dates: Nov 17 – 24.
Hours: Weekdays 8-6, Saturday 9-6, Sunday, 12-5
Locations:
Reid H Cofer Library, 5234 LaVista Rd. Tucker 30034
Stonecrest Library, 3123 Klondike Rd. Lithonia, 30038
Bessie Branham Red Car, 2051 Delano Dr. Atlanta, 30317
Dekalb Voter Reg and Elections Office, 4380 Memorial Dr. Decatur, 30032
Absentee Ballots
Return your ballots as soon as possible. The timeline is very tight.
Drop Boxes will be available in all early voting locations during early voting hours.
Ballots must be returned by Nov 30 at 7 pm.
For more information go to www.DeKalbVotes.com or call the Voter Protection Hotline 1-888-730-5816.
Questions? Please contact me at elena@elenaparent.com.