A Legislative Compromise on a Congressional Map Still Possible

Minnesota Report

A letter was sent from Peter Wattson and Joe Mansky to the chairs of the House and Senate Redistricting Committees, as we had said prior there being a possibility of agreement on a Congressional Map because the two offered by the Wattson and the Anderson Plaintiffs were quite similar. To others, these seem like merely, the establishment positions.

Now, we understand there is a new map, having been sent to the respective chairs and it embraces some of the concerns about consolidation of communities of interest in the case northern Tribal Communities, into one Congressional District.

We have included the letter and the supporting document for you to educate yourself with.Although, the main reason we believe the two legislative bodies could conceptually agree is because this map doesn’t affect the state legislature. Since there is not a manner in which Congressional Districts and Legislative Districts relate, the legislature could easy strike an agreement, because they have no vestiture on the outcome.

Here is the message Wattson sent.

Chair Johnson (or Chair Murphy) and Members of the Redistricting Committee,

The Minnesota Constitution assigns to you the responsibility for drawing congressional plans. We know – and the Special Redistricting Panel explicitly recognizes – that you would like to be able to fulfill that responsibility.

Joe Mansky and I have long experience in the redistricting process and have been successful in past years submitting proposals to previous special redistricting panels that attracted the interest of the judges. Along those lines, we have taken the liberty to prepare a new congressional proposal for your consideration. We hope that this plan, and the explanation we have given of it, will serve as the catalyst to get things moving.

Attached to this message are a packet of maps and reports setting forth the plan, a table that compares it to the other plans now before the Special Redistricting Panel, a fuller explanation of the plan by Mr. Mansky and me, and a block equivalency file to facilitate your examination of it. We hope you will give it serious consideration in the days between now and February 15.