The New York State Legislature released a bill late Monday laying out its proposed congressional district lines after Democrats voted to reject the district maps drawn by the bipartisan redistricting commission.
For New York's 22nd Congressional District, the proposed lines look nearly identical to those of the rejected New York Independent Redistricting Commission map. A portion of Oneida County including the City of Rome is now in the 21st Congressional District. The 22nd Congressional District picks up portions of Cayuga County and Cortland County including the cities of Auburn and Cortland. All of Onondaga County and Madison County remain in the district. This proposed district also now includes Sennett. This means Freshman Republican Rep. Brandon Williams would now live within the district lines.
The Oneida County Democratic Committee is raising concerns about splitting the county into two districts. Chair Mitchell G. Ford said the committee strongly supports keeping the City of Rome and the City of Utica in the same congressional district. The map used in the 2022 election made by a special master included both Rome and Utica in the 22nd Congressional District.
"These two cities form a clear community of interest within Oneida County and the Mohawk Valley that shares an Assembly District (AD-119), a single community college (Mohawk Valley Community College), the SUNY Polytechnic Institute, an interconnected business community, and a single county government," Ford said. "A congressional map that keeps these Mohawk Valley cities in one district will certainly be less vulnerable to court challenges."
The Oneida County Democratic Committee voted not to endorse any of the candidates running for the 22nd Congressional District seat.
"As it stands, the redistricting situation is very fluid, and the committee wants more information before making an endorsement," the Oneida County Democratic Committee said Feb. 15.
The state legislature is expected to vote to approve the map on Thursday. It's likely Republicans will sue, arguing the Democrats violated an anti-gerrymandering provision in the state constitution.
