(RightWing.org) – Battles over redistricting efforts are nothing new to the American political scene. Every 10 years, state officials redefine voting districts based on the latest US Census. A recent move by Oregon Democrats to allegedly skew districting in their favor drew the wrath of their Republican counterparts. And, they aren’t taking matters sitting down — quite the contrary.
On Monday, October 11, a group of four Oregon Republicans fired back at the Democrat’s new districting boundaries by filing a lawsuit in state court. The GOP officials allege the newly created map violates the state’s constitution and several statutes.
Oregon Republicans have sued to block a Democratic-passed congressional map that would lock in a 5-1 Dem advantage – https://t.co/y3Lbzy5wC6
— Reid Wilson (@PoliticsReid) October 12, 2021
The Republican plaintiffs claim Portland’s redistricting plan violates a state law prohibiting partisan considerations when defining district boundaries. They allege Democrats ran afoul of voter protections mandated by Oregon’s constitution.
The new map divides Portland into three congressional districts. However, they spread out randomly in three different directions. Due to their tentacle-like boundaries, Democrats appear to have an unfair advantage. For example, one of the new districts spans the Cascade Mountains to connect Portland with a notoriously liberal portion of Bend, Oregon. In all, the new districting map appears to give Democrats an impermissible advantage in five of the Beaver State’s six districts.
As the Republican lawsuit noted, if the Democratic redistricting effort survives unchecked, Oregon’s protection against “partisan gerrymandering” will “effectively [become] meaningless.”
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