Democrats have landed\u00a0on a legal strategy that just might net them an additional congressional seat in New York for the midterms.<\/p>\n
Democratic election lawyer Marc Elias\u00a0filed a lawsuit Monday, on behalf of four voters, that alleges New York\u2019s 11th District unconstitutionally weakens the power of Black and Latino voters and should be redrawn.<\/p>\n
That district is\u00a0currently held by Rep.\u00a0Nicole Malliotakis,\u00a0the lone Republican representing New York City. Her seat includes all of Staten Island and parts of southern Brooklyn.<\/p>\n
The lawsuit alleges\u00a0that the growing Black and Latino populations on Staten Island don\u2019t have the opportunity to elect their candidate of choice, a violation of the state\u2019s constitution and newly enacted state voting rights act.<\/p>\n
The map.\u00a0The proposed remedy, as noted in the lawsuit, is a map that \u201cpairs Staten Island with lower Manhattan.\u201d That suggests that Democrats are going for a targeted approach, urging the court to order a partial swap between Malliotakis\u2019 district and that of Democratic Rep.\u00a0Dan Goldman,\u00a0who represents lower Manhattan and western Brooklyn.<\/p>\n
In a statement,\u00a0Goldman said he\u2019d be willing to run in a district that included Staten Island.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf Staten Island\u00a0is drawn into my district, then I will be ready to step up and take the fight for democracy and a Democratic House majority to Nicole Malliotakis\u2019 doorstep,\u201d Goldman said. \u201cNothing can stand in the way of us defeating Donald Trump.\u201d<\/p>\n
The final decision\u00a0is up to the New York courts, but Democrats believe a likely outcome is that the Brooklyn portions of Goldman\u2019s and Malliotakis\u2019s districts combine into one seat. Lower Manhattan and Staten Island then form another.<\/p>\n
New York Democrats\u00a0have been told Goldman\u2019s new district would likely have a PVI of around D+10 in that scenario, according to sources close to the process, keeping it relatively safe.<\/p>\n