Koch: Expected district maps 'disgraceful'

ALBANY -- Former New York City Mayor Edward I. Koch said it would be "disgraceful" if New York's Republican-led Senate and the Assembly's Democratic majority propose new legislative districts this week aimed at protecting their political power.

"I believe there is no question but that the legislature is going to adopt maps which are going to be primarily supportive of incumbents to make sure they get re-elected," said Koch, leader of the NY Uprising group.

Koch has maintained contact with legislative leaders during the secretive process. He secured pledges -- most of them signed -- by every Senate Republican and most Assembly Democrats during the 2010 campaign to reform the process through independent, nonpartisan redistricting.

The Senate and Assembly majorities wouldn't comment yesterday.

Koch also said the recent U.S. Supreme Court decision that says legislatures, not the courts, should handle redistricting all but precludes any effective veto by Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo or legal intervention.

The Senate's Republican majority abandoned its pledge to create an independent commission to draw new districts and instead proposed a state constitutional amendment. If approved under a lengthy process, an independent commission wouldn't be able to act for another 10 years, the next time new lines will be drawn.

"So many legislators, and all of the Republicans led by their majority leader, reneged on their pledges," Koch said. "To me, that's the most disgraceful."

Koch said he has no faith a constitutional reform will be pursued. "If they reneged on the original pledge, what makes anyone think that anything they say now has credibility?" Koch said.

Common Cause, the League of Women Voters and the New York Public Interest Research Group are watching closely to see if the new lines adhere to civil rights and voting laws, or the majorities' political interests. They have long been critical of the process and have sought an independent panel to handle redistricting.

Newsday reported Senate Republicans will create a 63rd seat in Albany County, splitting a Democratic stronghold. The New York Daily News reported that the Senate GOP will also redraw a Queens district based in Flushing that would be the first district in the Senate dominated by Asian voters, one of New York's fastest-growing groups.

Democratic Sen. Neil Breslin, who has represented the Albany County district for 15 years, said Republicans are creating "an illegal district" for the county, which has always been a single Senate district.