Important 2010 Redistricting!
The following is courtesy of the Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee:
Tennessee Republicans preparing a redistricting power grab
We’ve known all along that the stakes couldn’t be higher in Tennessee’s closely-fought legislative elections next year, but state Republicans finally revealed their level of rank opportunism when State Rep. Gerald McCormick announced a Republican goal to gerrymander at least “five or six” new GOP legislative seats during redistricting in 2010.
Democrats quickly blasted the Republican announcement and defended the existing, Democratic-drawn maps, which have led to highly competitive elections between the two parties:
Chip Forrester, chairman of the Tennessee Democratic Party, said those statements do not have “a shred of decency or fairness.”
“His statement certainly reflects the zealotry Republicans have adopted,” Forrester said.
He said Democratic-drawn district lines were not “meant to disenfranchise Republicans.” During the 10-year period since the last redrawing of district boundaries, Republicans have seen their numbers increase as Democratic seats decreased in the Tennessee General Assembly.
If we can recapture one of Tennessee’s legislative chambers in 2010, we can prevent Republicans from gerrymandering decades of Republican dominance in the Tennessee legislature and congressional delegation. And since legislative control in Tennessee also determines partisan control of every county elections board in the state, we could prevent Republicans from abusing these offices to purge likely Democratic voters or otherwise harass Democratic campaigns all over the state.
