brianne murphy redistricting testimony

8/3/2019 Brianne Murphy Redistricting Testimony

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I am submitting this written testimony to supplement the

oral testimony I provided at the NY State Legislative Task

Force on Demographic Research and Reapportionment hearing

held in Syracuse, New York on July 19, 2011. I would again

like to thank you for holding the first hearing on this

very important topic in Syracuse; and for the opportunityto provide transparent commentary on the issue of

redistricting.

My testimony focuses on what and who should be considered

in drawing political boundaries; the unique characteristics

of Central New York which warrant the preservation of this

community as a voting bloc; and provides commentary on

recent political and legal developments related to

redistricting. I have purposely kept my commentary concise.

It is critical that any and all redistricting result in

fair and equitable voting districts. There is a long

history of expensive legal challenges against gerrymandered

districts that Onondaga County should strive to avoid. An

excellent example is seen in the 1992 Fund for Accurate and

Independent Representation vs. Weprin 796 F. Supp. 662

(N.D. N.Y. 1992), a time consuming exercise that brought to

light many of the issues we are hoping to avoid today.

While the courts ruled that the redistricting in question

was permitted to stand, there should not have even been an

appearance of inequality in the district. Onondaga Countycan ill afford the time and expense required for these

legal challenges; particularly as Central New York has been

repeatedly targeted for redistricting in the past 50 years.

Despite New Yorks long and rich history of acrimonious and

partisan politicking at the expense of voters; the New York

State Constitution remains silent on objective criteria for

drawing Congressional District boundaries, and instead

leaves unfettered discretion to the legislature.

Nonetheless, we are not without meaningful guidance on thisissue, as the New York Constitution outlines several

criteria for drawing the state legislative district

boarders, specifically:

Compactness (source: Constitution) Contiguity (source: Constitution)


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Follow county, town and city block boundaries whenpracticable (source: Constitution)

Nest Senate and House districts if possible (source:Constitution)

Additionally, in 2010, Central New Yorks own Senator,

Senator David J. Valesky sponsored independent

redistricting reform legislation, S. 660-2011/A5602-2011

entitled: Establishes apportionment commission to create

apportionment plans for congressional and state legislative

districts based on federal censuses; which outlines key

criteria to ensure fair and nonpartisan redistricting. The

legislation is supported by the leading good government

organizations and reform advocates in New York, including

former New York City Mayor Edward Koch, and Bill Samuels of

the New Roosevelt Initiative. The bill states in pertinentpart:

All apportionment plans would be drawn according to the

following principles:

- all congressional district shall be as nearly equal in

population as practicable;

- districts shall be contiguous;

- districts shall not be established that abridge or deny

minority voting rights;

- districts shall not be drawn to favor or oppose any

political party, incumbent, or candidates for office;

- the most and least populous senate and assembly districts

shall not exceed the mean population of districts for each

house by more than

one percent;

- counties and county subdivisions shall not be divided in

the formation of districts, and where it is unavoidable,

more populous counties or subdivisions will be divided in

preference to those with smaller populations;

- villages shall not be divided;- districts shall be as compact as possible; and

- districts shall unite communities of interest.


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As such, my testimony focuses on the following six key

concepts of fair redistricting:

First: Equal Population

Equal population should be a major consideration before any

type of redistricting. Onondaga County and the City of

Syracuse have experienced negligible changes in population,

and should thus be minimally impacted by redistricting. A

substantial change would be contrary to the census results.

Moreover, with over 400,000 residents, Onondaga County

alone makes up more than 50% of the population required for

a single Congressional District.

Second:Geographic Continuity

Districts need to be geographically contiguous. While an

obvious and logical consideration, the concept has often

been stretched, resulting in creatively drawn districts

delineated arbitrarily and illogically.

Third:Natural Geographic Borders

Districts ought to reflect existing geographic divides and

boundaries. New York is a diverse geographic state with

much of our agriculture and economic development linked tothe nature of the territory. The same holds true here in

Onondaga County and the City of Syracuse where we are

Central New York, a hub, located in the middle of the

State. Central New York and Onondaga County stand out as a

crossroads for New York State transportation and commerce.

Our district must be contiguous geographic entities whose

borders represent census blocks, not constructs of

convenience designed to benefit incumbency.

Fourth: Respecting Communities of Interest

Districts should be structured so they do not carve up

neighborhoods or separate groups of people living in an

area that have similar interests, which is particularly

relevant in areas, such as Syracuse and Onondaga County, as

they share close geography, social and economic interests


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including transportation and regional economic development.

Onondaga County has considerable momentum building a

positive future that is inclusive of our city, spreading

out to our county and towns in great part because of our

bipartisan political leadership at the County and City

level. Syracuse is a significant part of our county'sidentify, our community's identify and a significant center

for Central New York.

Fifth: Protecting Minority Voting Rights

No district shall be drawn for the denial or abridgement of

minority rights. Central New York encompasses an array of

socio-economic people. Just as we cannot divide communities

of common interest, we must be vigilant to avoid

disenfranchising ethnic and minority groups. It must be apriority of the redistricting that there be no abridgment

of any voter ability to cast a ballot in a fair and

equitable manner.

Fifth: The avoidance of Partisan Gerrymandering

We must avoid drawing lines solely for the purpose of

favoring any political party or incumbent. Redistricting

must not be used to favor incumbents; the new

apportionments must be made based on logic and law.

Political and Legal Considerations

In addition to addressing the key concepts of fair

redistricting and the unique characteristics of Onondaga

County, I want to raise recent political and legal

developments in New York State relating to redistricting.

In the two and a half months since the hearing in Syracuse,

two such developments come to mind.

The first is the result of the September 13, 2011 SpecialElection in New Yorks 9

th Congressional District, and more

notably the political commentary surrounding it. In the

immediate aftermath of the surprise Republican victory,

political speculation raised significant questions about

its potential impact on the future of NYs 25th,

specifically how Representative Turners victory would

complicate redistricting. This sort of speculative


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commentary based on rumor, conjecture, backroom deals and

partisan politics emphasizes the need for an independent,

transparent and nonpartisan redistricting process. The

election result in New Yorks 9th Congressional District has

no place in the redistricting process; bipartisan does not

mean nonpartisan.

Secondarily, on September 22, 2011 the State of New York

Board of Elections filed its second application for a

waiver of the 2009 Military and Overseas Voter Empowerment

(MOVE) Act Amendment to avoid moving its primary date for

2012, citing the redistricting process for its inability to

meet MOVE Act requirements. To quote:

New York State is unable to meet the 45-day pre-primary

election and the 45-day pre-general election ballotdelivery requirement in 2012 necessary for compliance with

the Military and Overseas Voter Empowerment (MOVE) Act

(Pub. L. No 11-84 Subtitle H), attributable to an undue

hardship due to a late primary. Specifically, even if the

States primary date is shifted as the result of ongoing

negotiations between the Legislature and the Governors

Office, New York States redistricting process in 2012 and

the short time frame leading up to any newly selected

primary date will render it extremely difficult, if not

virtually impossible, to administer the numerous elections

in 2012 in an orderly fashion and in compliance with theMOVE Act. [Emphasis added] See New York State 2012 Waiver

Application to the Federal Voting Assistance Program.

The undisputed, very laudable and important purpose of the

2009 MOVE Act Amendment, or the time to vote provision is

to ensure sufficient time for military and special federal

voters, thus allowing the ballots to be received and

counted. In its argument to support its request for a

waiver, the New York State Board of Elections cited

concerns of a lengthy and possibly litigious redistrictingprocess as rendering compliance with the time to vote

provision nearly impossible. While I recognize that this

issue does not fall within LATFORs immediate jurisdiction,

I nonetheless raise it, as I hope each of you recognize

your duty to prevent the voting rights of our families

serving overseas from becoming collateral damage to a

prolonged political battle over partisan redistricting.


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In Conclusion

The Greater Syracuse Area and Onondaga County share common

regional, economic, social and geographic interests, goalsand resources which warrant the preservation of this

community of interest along county lines to provide

citizens, organizations and government agencies streamlined

access to their Federal representatives. Segmenting the

Central New York hub area, Onondaga County could derail the

political social and economic progress and goals achieved

for the people in this county over the years. Syracuse, New

York is a center and needs to retain its radius of

influence and direct association around it. The reality is

that census reapportionment and highly politicizedredistricting will result in diluting the vote of Central

New Yorkers in Congress.

We cannot allow political interests to further marginalize

voters in Central New York, with creatively drawn districts

to protect incumbents; or extended political infighting to

marginalize our families serving overseas. Given the

current economic crisis facing our region, we cannot afford

to lose another voice in Congress. I urge each of you who

have the ability to influence redistricting, to recognize

the privilege and opportunity bestowed on you by thepeople; to base your decisions on population rather than

political popularity; and draw these lines to ensure that

all New Yorkers are represented.

Thank you.

Brianne Murphy, Candidate for Congress in NYs 25th

Congressional District.

brianne murphy redistricting testimony

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