New Hampshire Supreme Court approves new redistricting plan

The New Hampshire Supreme Courtroom Tuesday permitted a plan to redraw New Hampshire’s congressional districts. The permitted redistricting plan makes use of the “least change” strategy, which means that solely 5 cities can have their congressional districts modified.

Theresa Norelli, the previous Home Speaker for New Hampshire, introduced a lawsuit alleging that the present congressional map violates the New Hampshire Structure. Norelli additionally argued that the present map “malapportioned ” the inhabitants of New Hampshire. The lawsuit was filed in response to New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu vetoing two prior plans of redrawing the congressional strains distributing the voter inhabitants extra evenly among the many districts.

Because of lawmakers and the Governor being unable to compromise on methods to redraw the district, the courtroom assigned Nathaniel Persily, a Stanford legislation professor, to redraw the map. In his report, filed final week, Persily stated he was “instructed to switch current congressional district strains ‘solely to the extent required to adjust to the [court’s] standards and ‘least change’ requirements.”

John Devaney, the legal professional for the plaintiffs, urged the Courtroom to undertake the Persily map on Tuesday. He argued that it might stop any confusion for the reason that candidate submitting interval would open on Wednesday. Shortly after the arguments concluded, the Courtroom launched a unanimous order implementing the map Persily created.

Kelly Burton, President of the Nationwide Democratic Redistricting Committee (NDRC), known as the choice a “win for the voters.” Burton stated:

The New Hampshire Supreme Courtroom’s map is a win for the voters of New Hampshire, who will be capable of vote in truthful congressional districts on this 12 months’s election. All through the redistricting course of, Republicans within the New Hampshire Common Courtroom arrogantly handed partisan gerrymander after partisan gerrymander, however they had been stopped by Governor Sununu’s veto. The map adopted by the New Hampshire Supreme Courtroom at this time is just not solely a transparent rejection towards this brazen try at political gerrymandering, it’s a victory for the voters of New Hampshire who didn’t cease preventing for truthful maps.

The New Hampshire cities of Jackson, Albany, Sandwich, Campton, and New Hampton are actually a part of New Hampshire’s 2nd congressional district for the upcoming fall 2022 elections