Republicans say new Georgia voting districts adjust to court docket ruling, however Democrats disagree

ATLANTA — Georgia’s Republican lawmakers have accepted new voting districts for themselves, however Democrats say the proposals are nonetheless racially discriminatory towards Black voters.

Friday, the state House voted 101-77 to approve a brand new House map and the Senate voted 32-23 to approve a brand new Senate map.

The House map now goes to the Senate for extra work, whereas the Senate map goes to the House. Typically, every chamber has taken a hands-off strategy to the map that the opposite chamber has drawn for itself.

Lawmakers had been known as into particular session after U.S. District Judge Steve Jones dominated in October that Georgia’s congressional, state Senate and state House violated federal legislation by diluting Black voting energy. Jones mandated Black majorities in a single extra congressional district, two extra state Senate districts and 5 extra state House districts.

Republicans haven’t but unveiled their congressional plan. They mentioned in debate Friday that their legislative plans will meet the phrases of Jones’ order.

“We’re going to comply with Judge Jones’ order,” mentioned House Speaker Jon Burns, a Newington Republican. “We’re going to create new Black-majority districts. That’s what we were told to do, that’s what this map does. I feel confident with this map and we’ll move forward.”

Democrats although, are predicting that Jones will discover the Republican plans are nonetheless unlawful and draw his personal maps. In the Senate, they are saying Republicans don’t do sufficient to repair the issues Jones recognized in suburbs south of Atlanta, together with two districts untouched that Jones recognized as unlawful. In the House, Democrats argue that adjustments to some districts the place a coalition of various nonwhite teams has elected Democrats are additionally unlawful.

“You can’t obscure the truth,” mentioned Senate Minority Leader Gloria Butler, a Stone Mountain Democrat. “The Republican proposal dilutes Black voting power just like the 2021 Republican proposal does.”

Senate Reapportionment and Redistricting Chairwoman Shelly Echols, a Gainesville Republican, rejected that declare.

“The judge required that we draw two additional majority-Black districts in south metro Atlanta and that is exactly what we have done,” Echols informed senators.

Some Democrats had hoped the brand new maps would imply good points that would chop Republican majorities, however maps superior by Republicans would possible keep a 33-23 GOP benefit within the state Senate. Republicans might lose two seats of their 102-78 House majority due to new Black-majority districts. A congressional district map has but to be proposed, however Republicans at the moment maintain a 9-5 majority in Georgia’s congressional delegation.

In the Senate, Republicans mentioned they drew their map with objective of retaining the 33-23 break up. Reapportionment and Redistricting chair Shelly Echols, a Gainesville Republican, mentioned she wished “to make sure the Senate plan remained balanced between the parties as it was in 2021.”

Those Republican selections imply two Senate Democrats who now signify white-majority districts will as an alternative signify Black-majority districts. But Republicans touted that no incumbents had been drawn into the identical district.

That’s in contrast to the House plan, which attracts collectively one pair of Republicans and three pairs of Democrats, together with House Minority Whip Sam Park of Lawrenceville, the second-ranking Democrat within the House. Democrats tried to supply an modification in committee on Friday to maneuver Park to a unique district, however House Reapportionment and Redistricting Committee Chairman Rob Leverett, an Elberton Republican, didn’t permit the modification to go ahead as a result of Democrats didn’t present maps to committee members exhibiting the change.