Staff Reports
The Georgia legislature made major moves towards making new congressional maps that would keep the balance of power in favor of the Republicans. The state Senate gave the thumbs up to the proposed plan and sent it off to the state House for further discussion. Both chambers also signed off on new maps for the state’s legislature, with the final decision resting in the hands of Gov. Brian Kemp, a Republican. These redrawn maps are due to be used in the 2024 election after a court stepped in and said that the current maps don’t play by the rules of the Voting Rights Act.
Georgia legislature approves new congressional maps that would protect GOP https://t.co/I1nJDeCuJH https://t.co/I1nJDeCuJH
— Washington Examiner (@dcexaminer) December 6, 2023
If this Republican-backed congressional map goes through, it would mean nine Republican seats and five Democratic seats. The plan aims to redraw the 6th and 7th Congressional Districts, and it passed in the state Senate by a vote of 32-22. But wait, there’s more! The state House of Representatives still needs to give it the nod. And guess what? The GOP has a tight grip on both chambers of the state legislature, so things are looking pretty nice for them.
The new maps for the state House and Senate aren’t too shabby either. They would barely dent the GOP’s dominance and even create some new districts where African Americans are the majority. The state Senate map would maintain a very comfy 33-22 advantage for GOP seats, and the state House map would only see one or two GOP losses from its current 102-78 majority. Talk about keeping things in order!
Now, the Democrats aren’t too happy about all of this. They’re saying that the new maps create districts where African Americans are the majority at the expense of other minority opportunity districts. They’re throwing around some fancy words like “violation of the court order,” but Republicans are just shaking their heads at them. They’re saying it’s all about politics and not about following the rules. Republican state Sen. Bill Cowsert even called them out, saying that they’re just mad because they want more Democratic people in Congress for Georgia. Sounds like a sore loser situation to me!
And let’s not forget about District Judge Steve Jones, who set a deadline of December 8 to get these new maps sorted out. Looks like the Republicans in Georgia are out here playing by the rules and doing their best to keep things in their favor. Go team red!
