NH GOP Has Already Made Gerrymandering Plans Crystal Clear

Today, one week out from public hearings and two weeks out from an initial vote, we expect the first drafts of New Hampshire’s congressional maps to be made public. All year, Republicans have made clear their intentions to manipulate the map in their favor.

Earlier this year, Republican State Committee chair Stephen Stepanek guaranteed that because Republicans controlled the redistricting process, they would abuse it in their favor, saying, “Because of this we control redistricting. I can stand here today and guarantee you that we will send a conservative Republican to Washington, D.C. as a Congress person in 2022.”

Just the other week, in yet another surprising admission for a candidate to make, Gail Huff Brown said Republicans would use redistricting to make CD-01, the district she is running in, more conservative for Republicans’ benefit saying - “we'll have even a better and more conservative district than we have right now.”

Republicans should not abuse this process to corrupt our democracy. These congressional district lines have remained largely unchanged for decades and should remain virtually the same for the next decade other than balancing out populations. Attacking the tradition of fair Granite State districts for partisan gain is out of bounds and undermines the will of the voters

Gov. Sununu vetoed numerous bipartisan advisory independent redistricting commission bills over the past two years which would have helped ensure fair maps - yet still claims he will veto any maps that are “funky” or don’t pass “the smell test.” These weak claims leave Sununu plenty of wiggle room to sign manipulated maps.

In response, NHDP Chair Ray Buckley has released the following statement:

“Republicans are making it crystal clear that they fully intend to draw maps that prioritize their power, and ignore the will of Granite State voters. Voters should pick their politicians, not the other way around. That is why 70 towns and cities have passed resolutions calling for a fair and transparent map drawing process that remain largely unchanged from their current make up except for balancing out population. Instead of working behind closed doors to manipulate our maps for their own corrupt political purposes, Republicans should focus instead on protecting and preserving our democracy.”