FRANKFORT, Ky. — House and Senate lawmakers advanced their redistricting bills through committee Wednesday, clearing the first legislative hurdle in the redistricting process.
Lawmakers have to redraw the boundaries for congressional districts after the U.S. Census every decade.
The first map to pass in committee Wednesday was the Senate’s map for the U.S. House of Representatives.
“We tried to tamper down the politics because the map as you see it was a map that has basically existed for quite some time, with some deviation, that was created back in 1992,” Senate President Robert Stivers (R-Manchester) said.
The new congressional map leaves Louisville’s 3rd Congressional District largely the same, while giving some of Jefferson County to the 2nd Congressional District, and Franklin County to the 1st Congressional District.
Only two members of the panel voted no, including Sen. Adrienne Southworth (R-Lawrenceburg).
“This is the kind of thing we’re here to make sure doesn’t happen,” she said.
Southworth and Senate Minority Floor Leader Morgan McGarvey (D-Louisville) voted no to both the Congressional map and the state Senate map during the same committee meeting.
McGarvey said the process has been rushed while also advocating for an independent commission to handle redistricting in the future.
“There are many people all over the commonwealth, whether it’s people who are looking to run and put their careers on hold; whether it’s people who just want to know how they’re going to be represented and how they’re going to be reflected in their government,” he said.
Southworth had concerns about how her own Senate district was redrawn.
“My constituents are totally torn up. I’m losing 100,000 of them, in all different directions,” she said. “And so I feel like we need to be coming together on what’s the best policy for the state, not what benefits me or what benefits my district only.”
Sen. Chris McDaniel (R-Taylor Mill) voted yes but said he had issues with how his district in Northern Kentucky was drawn.
“But the fact is there’s simply no place to necessarily push when you’re already bumping up against that deviation,” he said. “And when you bump against a border, and you bump against a deviation, and you bump against counties that can’t split, there’s only so much you can do.”
A separate House committee approved a new map for the Kentucky House, but it didn’t have the support of any Democrats, who had several issues with how districts were drawn.
Rep. Jerry Miller (R-Eastwood) defended the map.
“Math dictates the map,” he said. “It’s gotta move with the population shifts, but at some point in time, there is a judgment call.”
The House committee also approved a new map for the Kentucky Supreme Court.
The maps will now head to the floors of their respective chambers, where lawmakers will likely vote Thursday.
Legislative leaders plan on passing both maps to the governor by Saturday.
The House also suspended rules Wednesday to approve a bill pushing the filing deadline for candidates in this year’s elections, which is currently Friday, to Jan. 25. The bill is scheduled to be heard in a Senate committee Thursday.