General Comments
I would like to thank the Committee for their work in this redistricting process. It has been transparent and encouraged citizen involvement. I have some general comments on both the House and Senate maps. The House map is much better than the current map and reverses decades of partisan gerrymanders to create a fairer division of the districts based on populations shifts. This population shift from rural to urban areas and the increase in minority populations is reflected in the map, especially in the south east corner of the state with 3 new districts. I also am in favor of the 7 minority opportunity districts that this map creates, giving this voting a block a chance to be represented. The Senate map has some flaws that need to be addressed in your revision. This map appears to retain many gerrymandered districts from the current map, benefitting certain incumbents from both political parties. It does not represent the population shift to the urban areas and the increase in minority populations. The north west and north central areas, which have lost population, are overrepresented. The south east area, which had an increase in population, is underrepresented. This needs to be revised so that each district has close to equal numbers of citizens. Minority populations will be underrepresented since only one minority opportunity district is created and this does not reflect the increase in this population. I hope that you will consider all comments as you make the final map revisions to create fair and equitable maps that represent Pennsylvania’s population shifts without partisan influence. All citizens should have a chance to have a voice and it should reflect their community and their values.