Revise Senate Map for Lancaster
It is clear and obvious from the proposed Senate map that the number one priority was to preserve safe districts for all incumbents, regardless of party. And, mission accomplished! Out of the 50 districts, only three are competitive (partisan performance differences of less than 5%). That’s just not good for democracy. One could argue that the vast preponderance of safe districts at both the federal and state level is the main reason our politics is so broken. Instead of searching for compromise solutions acceptable to most, legislators are free to completely ignore the wishes of up to 40% of their constituency. In Pennsylvania, where partisan leanings are so concentrated, it is, admittedly, difficult to create competitive districts. But, when the opportunity arises, it should be taken. In Lancaster County, where I reside, the central part of the county (predominantly urban and suburban) is evenly divided among the two parties. Instead of creating a natural competitive district, your draft map intentionally separates the Democratic communities, intentionally diluting the Democratic (and minority) votes in order to avoid a competitive district and maintain three solidly Republican Senate districts- a definitive case of the gerrymandering technique called “cracking”. The result, unless changed, is that none of the 100,000 Democratic voters in Lancaster County will have a chance to have their voices heard in the Pennsylvania Senate for the next ten years. This proposed plan substantially reduces legislative power from the growing urban and suburban sections of Lancaster County and further consolidates it in the more rural areas. The “correction” is relatively simple: Move Lancaster City, Lancaster Township, and Millersville into the 36th District with the county’s other largely suburban communities and move the mostly rural communities of West Earl, Ephrata Township and Borough, Akron, Warwick, Lititz, Elizabeth Township, Penn Township, and Manheim Borough from the 36th District to the almost completely rural 13th District. This change will: o Keep both incumbent Senators in their respective districts; o Maintain each district’s population; o Not impact any other Senate district; o Create the most competitive Senate district in the state; o Maintain compactness of the districts; o Provide an opportunity for Democrats to have at least a chance to win one of three Senate districts, in a county with only 51.1% Republican registration; o Create a district that best attempts to form a “community of interest” of suburban and urban communities within an otherwise largely rural county; o Enhance the influence of minority voters. Approximately one-third of the (potentially winning) Democratic Party electorate will be minority voters – a sufficiently large enough segment to heavily influence the party nominee and issue positions; o Keep Lancaster Township and Manheim Township, which share a police force, in the same district. Do the right thing. Enact this “correction”!