Albany plan could boost NYS Democrats in Congress

ALBANY — Democrats in the State Legislature introduced legislation late Monday intended to help them increase the number of Congressional seats they control, including one on Long Island.

The move follows Republican efforts to create more favorable district maps across the South, amid a nationwide redistricting fight for competitive advantage in the U.S. House.

The New York bill would allow the legislature to redraw the state's 26 congressional districts in the middle of the decade, rather than after the U.S. Census numbers come out, as it typically does.

The proposal allows state Democrats to approve new maps with a simple majority vote and removes a ban on maps drawn to benefit a political party. It also says that if the maps are successfully challenged in court, they go back to the legislature for changes.

Democrats say the changes, which would require voter approval in 2027 before going into effect for the 2028 election, are necessary to combat Republican efforts to maximize their representation in Congress.

Last week, Louisiana joined Florida, Tennessee and Alabama in drawing new congressional maps that reduce the number of districts currently controlled by Democrats in the wake of a U.S. Supreme Court decision that weakened the Voting Rights Act.

President Donald Trump has urged Republican-controlled statehouses to redraw their maps ahead of the 2026 elections.

"This legislation remains firmly rooted in the democratic process, giving New Yorkers themselves the final say at the ballot box," Majority Leader Andrea Stewart Cousins said in a statement. "We believe these changes will ensure that our state has the tools necessary to preserve a level playing field in the face of Republican-led efforts to tilt maps and weaken democratic participation — without compromising the integrity of the Independent Redistricting Commission."

Potential gains

Democrats hope the eventual new district lines could help them pick up as many as four seats, including ones on Long Island and in the Hudson Valley. Democrats currently hold 19 of New York's 26 seats.

Rep. Mike Lawler, a Hudson Valley Republican whose seat is among those that could be affected by the changes, joined Republicans in Albany Monday to criticize the Democrats’ plan.

Lawler said New York Democrats kicked off the national redistricting battles with failed attempts to draw partisan maps, including in 2022 when the state Court of Appeals threw out maps the legislature drew and appointed a special master to create new maps. In the 2022 November election, Republicans won 11 seats in New York, an increase of three seats that helped the party win control of the House of Representatives.

"These folks have corrupted the State of New York, and they are going to now try for a fourth time to violate the Constitution, to disregard the will of the voters, and to seize power for themselves," Lawler said.

New census

Another bill introduced Monday evening would allow the legislature to phrase the wording of constitutional amendments on ballots, rather than the state Board of Elections.

"We just think it's better to be in our hands," Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie said on Tuesday.

Any lines drawn by the legislature would only remain in effect for the 2028 and 2030 elections. The state’s Independent Redistricting Commission would be required to submit maps based on new census data by Jan. 15, 2032.

Democrats intend to push the bill through in the final few days of the legislative session. The bill would then need to be passed again next year in order to go on the ballot in November because it amends the state’s Constitution.

The battle over redistricting is expected to cost both parties tens of millions of dollars, similar to fights in other states.