The New York Independent Redistricting Commission approved a new map of congressional districts Thursday afternoon. It now goes to the state Legislature for final approval.
IRC Chair Ken Jenkins said they approached this process with the goal of seeking compromise and fulfilling the constitutional mandate.
"This vote is ultimately a victory for the commission process and for democratic, small d, democratic participation in the state of New York," Jenkins said.
Under the new map, New York's 22nd Congressional District would be changing. The district under the map used for the 2022 election includes all of Onondaga County, Oneida County and Madison County and a sliver of Oswego County. It includes the cities of Syracuse, Utica and Rome.
Now, the district would stretch into Cortland County and Cayuga County and include the City of Auburn. A portion of Oneida County, including the City of Rome, would shift from being part of the 22nd District to part of New York's 21st Congressional District, represented by Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-Schuylerville).
Rep. Brandon Williams (R-Sennett) did not live within the 22nd District lines under the 2022 maps. But, his home in Sennett is now within the district lines under the new IRC maps released Thursday.
The 22nd Congressional District is rated as a toss-up by the Cook Political Report. The new IRC lines may help tilt the seat toward a Democratic win in the 2024 election.
Grant Reeher, director of the Campbell Public Affairs Institute at Syracuse University, said the 22nd Congressional District has gotten more Democratic friendly, but he notes the district was already Democratic friendly and doesn't view the new congressional lines as a game changer.
"The previous election was close with Brandon Williams and Francis Conole," Reeher said. "This is a presidential year. There's going to be a lot bigger forces involved in helping to determine who wins that seat. I doubt that we'll be looking back a couple days after the election in November of this year thinking 'Oh it was but for the additional redistricting that so and so won or so and so lost.'"
The state legislature will need to vote to approve the new map to finalize the lines.
Williams weighed in on the decision with a post on X.
Wow… Are the broken politics and chaos of Albany over yet? I find myself in my 5th congressional race in just two-years.
— Brandon Williams (@Brandon4ny22) February 15, 2024
Changing lines won’t change minds—voters want common sense and relief from Progressive fantasies.#LetsVoteBrandon
State Senator John Mannion (D-Geddes) is one of the Democratic candidates hoping to run against Williams. As a member of the state legislature, he'll get to vote on the map for the district he hopes to represent.
"Regardless of the makeup of this district, Central New Yorkers are fed up with Rep. Brandon Williams’ extremism and partisan politics that have gotten nothing done in Washington, while instead voting again and again to roll back abortion rights and pass far-right legislation that cuts efforts to lower housing, food, and energy costs for New Yorkers," Mannion said in a statement.
Democratic candidate Sarah Klee Hood also weighed in.
"As an Air Force veteran, I know that regardless of external factors, we must stay focused on our greater goal: beating Brandon Williams in November," Klee Hood said. "Central New Yorkers need a fighter for the middle class, my fellow veterans, and reproductive freedom."
