By Jeff Brindle | 12/28/15 8:32am
In the Legislature, a bill is moving that would propose a constitutional amendment that would change the way the state’s legislative districts are configured.
Rather than basing redistricting on ten-year, census-driven population changes, the amendment would base redistricting on polling data measuring the average vote statewide over nine legislative election cycles.
Democratic proponents of the amendment maintain that it would ensure that ten legislative districts would be competitive, in turn contributing to higher voter turnout. But Republican opponents counter that it could undermine democracy by indefinitely locking in the current Democratic majorities in both legislative houses.
The proposed amendment is being introduced at a time when the U.S. Supreme Court is considering a case that well might affect state legislative redistricting, but in a different way.
The divergent paths of these two actions may clash at some future time, depending on the outcome of the ballot question and the decision of the high court.
https://politickernj.com/2015/12/two-paths-to-redistricting/?utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=New%20Campaign&utm_term=Wake%20Up%20Call%20NJ
