Redistricting board approves plan set by Alaska Supreme Court

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU) – The Alaska Redistricting Board unanimously voted to approve a 2022 interim plan as the final 2023 redistricting plan during a board meeting at the Anchorage Legislative Office Building. The vote comes after the Alaska Supreme Court ruled last month that proposed redistricting maps in Eagle River and South Anchorage were unconstitutional.

During the meeting Monday, brief public testimony was held before the board’s legal counsel Matt Singer reviewed the court’s decision over five lawsuits filed by the Matanuska-Susitna Borough, the cities of Valdez and Skagway, the Calista Corporation, as well as East Anchorage residents. According to Singer, lawsuits after proposed redistricting cycles are not uncommon.

“Redistricting litigation is as certain as death and taxes in Alaska,” Singer said at the meeting. “Every redistricting plan has been challenged in court, and every plan has been tweaked, changed, modified, or — most often — kicked out entirely by the court system.”

According to Singer, the court directed the board with two options to move forward after its ruling; decide if additional redistricting was necessary or approve the interim plan that was put in place for the 2022 election year.

While the board moved forward with its decision to adopt the interim plan as the final redistricting plan, it didn’t come without some hesitation from board members such as Bethany Marcum.

“I just fear that by adopting the court-mandated plan, the board — the constitutional board — would be surrendering our discretion to the courts,” Marcum said. “If we just accept this interim plan that the court directed us to use, they become the redistricting authority for this cycle and I think that sets a bad precedent.”

The board’s chair John Binkley stated he didn’t agree with all of the court’s opinions, but respected its decision.

“I’m proud, really, of the work that this board did and proud to be a part of this process,” Binkley said. “You don’t make a lot of friends because many people are always unhappy with the process, but it’s a good process. It’s a foundation, really, for our democracy.”

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