New York Adopts Court-drawn Congressional and State Senate Maps
WASHINGTON, D.C. — On Saturday, May 21, the New York State Supreme Court, the trial court in the case challenging New York’s congressional and state Senate maps, adopted new maps. The New York Court of Appeals, the state’s highest court, had previously overturned both maps for being enacted through an unconstitutional process and the congressional map for additionally favoring Democrats. The new maps were drawn by a special master appointed by the trial court judge and will be used for this year’s elections. While the congressional and state Senate primary elections were originally scheduled for June 28, the court moved the primary elections for these races only to Aug. 23 and reopened candidate filing.
The new congressional map has caused a significant shakeup among the state’s Democratic delegation, with multiple incumbents drawn into districts with other incumbents or into districts significantly different from their previous ones. The map is also more competitive than the overturned map, with 21 of 26 seats nominally Democratic — but many with close margins between Democrats and Republicans. The map is a major setback in Democratic efforts to retain control of the U.S. House of Representatives this year.