By Keegan Gibson, Managing Editor of PoliticsPA - Full Article Here
Rep. Greg Vitali (D-Delaware) compares the GOP map with his own draft.
Republicans scored a big victory today as the Chairman of the panel charged with drawing new legislative districts voted to advance preliminary maps drawn by the Republican caucuses.
The maps would make a Democratic comeback in the Pa. House, not to mention the Pa. Senate, more difficult.
Stephen McEwen, a retired Judge of the Pa. Superior Court, voted with Majority Leaders Dominic Pileggi of the Senate and Mike Turzai of the House over the objection of the panel’s two Democrats.
Senate Minority Leader Jay Costa and House Minority Leader Frank Dermody said the maps represented a sharp departure from terms previously negotiated by both parties and amounted to a partisan power grab.
You can view all the preliminary maps here. Capitol Ideas has a district-by-district list of municipalities.
McEwen, who was elected to office as a Republican, seemed sympathetic to Pileggi and Turzai, who said that they were not seeking partisan gain, but fairly reflecting changes in demographics. Namely, that Democratic areas in western PA had shrunk as Republican areas in eastern PA grew. These preliminary maps are a starting point rather than the final product. The new boundaries are subject to a 30 day period of public review, at which point the panel will have 30 additional days to make corresponding changes. Sources close to the LRC predict the final maps will be completed before lawmakers leave for winter recess in mid-December.
(edited from original article) Of local impact, Republican Rep. John Evans’ Erie-based 5th district will move to central Berks County. He is retiring after this term.
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