The Democrat-led New York state legislature passed a constitutional amendment Wednesday that would allow for mid-decade redistricting in 2028 and beyond while giving the Legislature greater latitude to circumvent the state’s Independent Redistricting Commission and removing language in the state Constitution prohibiting gerrymandering.
Of little use to Democrats in 2026, the amendment would have to pass again in the state Legislature next year and be approved by voters in 2027 in order to net Democrats an anticipated two to three congressional seats in 2028. It passed with wide Democratic support and Republican disdain.
“Is partisan gerrymandering healthy for democracy?” Republican state Sen. Mark Walczyk asked Democratic Deputy Senate Majority Leader Mike Gianaris on the Senate floor.
“In an ideal world, no,” Gianaris replied.
That exchange kicked off hours of debate and comment in both houses of the state Legislature. Democrats have insisted the amendment is needed to address the ongoing national redistricting wars, while Republicans have pointed to New York Democrats’ conduct during a messy go-round with the commission’s first attempt at drawing a map in 2022.
One by one, Republicans in the minority chastised state Democrats, despite the effort’s roots in President Donald Trump’s request that Republican-led state legislatures partake in mid-decade redistricting ahead of the 2026 midterms.
Multiple Republicans acknowledged that they did not condone Trump’s conduct in pushing for mid-decade redraws in other states.
“What has been done in the other states is wrong, but we should not be doing the same thing,” said state Sen. Patricia Canzoneri-Fitzpatrick.
In the lower chamber, Assemblymember Josh Jensen echoed that two wrongs don’t make a right.
“If another state manipulates its maps for partisan gain, that doesn’t make it virtuous,” he said. “If Republicans somewhere do something wrong, Democrats doing the same thing doesn’t make it right.”
Gianaris, a key architect of the amendment, defended the process and accused Republicans of glossing over the complicated history of the Independent Redistricting Commission, created as a complex political compromise via constitutional amendment in 2014 at a time when the state Legislature was divided between a Democrat-led Assembly and the waning years of a Republican-led Senate.
“The world has changed since then, and not in a good way,” Gianaris said. “We do not operate in a vacuum in New York State. We are one of 50. We are electing members of Congress who don’t just sit in New York State; they go to Washington. This process is one that undoubtedly has national implications.”
Gianaris added, “If you respect the voters, give them a choice.”
The passage of the amendment took up valuable floor debate time as the Legislature works to pass a first-in-the-nation one-year moratorium on data center construction, limits on surveillance pricing tactics and other member priorities.
State Sen. Pat Fahy said that for Democrats in the driver’s seat, it’s worth it.
“This is the hand we’ve been dealt by vicious partisan politics around the country,” she said. “We have to meet fire with fire.”