by Doug La Rocque
When it comes to who represents Rensselaer County in Congress, the State Senate and to a degree the State Assembly, the winds of change are howling. And naturally, there is a lot of howling about that. On Sunday, the Democratically controlled State Legislature unveiled their redistricting maps, after the commission tasked with the redistricting was unable to come up with one set of maps. They had presented two maps to the State lawmakers, one favoring Democrats and the other favoring Republicans. What the Legislature finally came up with has the GOP screaming gerrymandering at the top of their lungs. Here are some of the changes.
Congress
The vast majority of the County is currently represented by Democrat Antonio Delgado, with Democrat Paul Tonko’s district including the Cities of Troy and Rensselaer. Under the new district set up, Congressman Tonko will only have the City of Troy, with the southern portion of the County still represented by Mr. Delgado. There is now a third congressional district in the County: the 21st. District Representative Republican Elise Stefanik’s coverage will now extend to include the Towns of Hoosick, Petersburgh, Pittstown, Grafton, Poestenkill, Schaghticoke and Brunswick.
State Senate
This is where the biggest change occurs. For the past ten years, most of Rensselaer County has been part of the 43rd Senate District represented by Senator Daphne Jordan. If the new districting is approved, Senator Jordan will only represent the City of Troy. Senator Neil Breslin will pick up Schodack, with the majority of the County moving to the 41st Senate District, currently represented by Senator Sue Serino of Hyde Park in Dutchess County.
State Assembly
Assemblyman Jake Ashby currently represents the majority of Rensselaer County, southern Washington County and the northeastern portion of Columbia County. His district too will undergo some changes, with New Lebanon moving to Assemblywoman Dee Dee Barrett’s district, with Mr. Ashby picking up portions of northwestern Columbia County. He is also losing East Greenbush as part of his district put picking up the Town of Bethlehem in Albany County.
Reaction
Perhaps the most important issue involved with the congressional switch is PFOAs. Both Hoosick Falls and Petersburgh having been dealing with the contamination of the water sources for many years, and Congressman Delgado has been a staunch supporter in Washington for these two communities. Petersburgh Town Supervisor Katie Murray says Mr. Delgado has done a wonderful job supporting her Town but is also optimistic that Congresswoman Stefanik will be just as cooperative. Hoosick Town Supervisor Mark Surdam echoes Ms. Murray’s statement and adds that of late, the involved state agencies have been equally responsive. Both supervisors indicated that while there are still issues to be addressed, hopefully most of the remedial action has been completed or is underway. As to the PFOA issue transferring from Mr. Delgado to Ms. Stefanik, the Congresswoman tells The Eastwick Press, “Since I took office, I have a strong record of bringing the concerns of New York’s 21st District to the highest levels of Congress and delivering results for my constituents. In the same way, I would advocate for the communities harmed by and recovering from the PFOA water contamination and look forward to hearing from them directly on this important issue.”
When asked about the major changes in her district, Senator Jordan sent The Eastwick Press this statement: “Albany politicians have now shamefully and repeatedly ignored the will of hundreds of thousands of New Yorkers who wanted an independent redistricting process.”
Assemblyman Ashby’s response was much more poignant. “After passing legislation, a statewide referendum, which altered our State’s constitution preventing the State Legislature from drawing district lines, we have seen the Democratic-led State Legislature do everything in its power to circumvent the will of the voters. It is a tone deaf response and woefully damaging to public trust.”
Not everyone is upset with the new district lines. Senate Deputy Majority Leader Michael Gianaris, who also heads the campaign arm of the Senate Democratic Conference, said during an interview on WNYC Tuesday that the districts were drawn to move away from gerrymandering, not closer. “As we unravel the gerrymanders of the past, it doesn’t make it a gerrymander of today. These are districts drawn fairly,” Gianaris said.
See You in Court
It is widely expected there will be a legal challenge to the redistricting, as there was ten years ago. At that time a special appointed master was tasked with redrawing the congressional, senate and assembly districts, which are currently still in place. The newly passed constitutional amendment changes the rules a bit, but some legal experts says provisions of State law prohibiting gerrymandering still apply. As to her part in the whole scenario, Governor Kathy Hochul says she will wait until the measure is officially passed by the Legislature and sitting on her desk before deciding whether to sign it or not.
