close

State representatives hear from residents on congressional redistricting

4 min read
1 / 3

Brad Hundt/Observer-Reporter

State Reps. Seth Grove, left, and Jason Ortitay take part in a Pennsylvania House State Government Committee hearing in South Fayette Wednesday.

2 / 3

Brad Hundt/Observer-Reporter

Suzanne Broughton of McCandless testifies on congressional redistricting at a Pennsylvania House State Government Committee hearing in South Fayette Township Wednesday.

3 / 3

Brad Hundt/Observer-Reporter

Stephen Kenny, a resident of Midland, testifies before the Pennsylvania House State Government Committee on congressional redistricting. The committee meeting was held in South Fayette Township.

With the redrawing of congressional lines looming in the months ahead, the Pennsylvania House State Government Committee had one of eight regional hearings on the issue in South Fayette Township Wednesday morning.

Republicans and Democrats on the committee heard from 17 residents of the Pittsburgh region on how they would like the lines to be drawn based on 2020 U.S. census data. Most said they hoped the lines would be drawn in a fair and nonpartisan manner, and they would be crafted so candidates from both major parties would be competitive within them. Along with individuals who testified before the committee at the Beacon I Building just outside of Bridgeville, the committee also accepted written testimony.

State Rep. Scott Conklin, D-Centre, the Democratic chair of the majority-Republican committee, said at the outset of the hearing, “This is your government. This is your opportunity to say what you would like to see done, and our opportunity to listen.”

Nick Flower, a clinical psychologist and Upper St. Clair resident, testified, “Partisan gerrymandering is a cancer on our democracy. I won’t pretend to be an expert on how exactly (congressional lines) should be drawn; however, I will say that there should be exactly zero consideration for drawing them with the intention to hold on to political power. This is the case no matter what party holds power.”

Suzanne Broughton, a retired physics teacher and a resident of a retirement community in McCandless, used maps in her testimony to illustrate how congressional districts in the area have become less competitive over the last 30 years.

“A well-designed legislative process, implemented in good faith, should produce a fair map,” Broughton said. “But in Pennsylvania the legislative process is neither well-designed nor fairly implemented. … The maps have been drawn by the majority party leadership with little consultation with their own members, none with the minority party, and no input from the public.”

Broughton was also one of a handful of people expressing dismay that the state House and Senate, both of which are controlled by Republicans, have not had joint hearings. Other residents also said that the location of the hearing, in an office building overlooking Interstate 79, was not immediately accessible by public transportation.

Midland resident Stephen Kenny said he hopes that agricultural areas are not broken up in the redistricting process, and small sections of suburban and rural communities should not be lumped in with urban areas. That would, according to Kenny, “(Keep) regions with interdependent local economies grouped together as much as possible, distributing mostly unrelated industrial areas between as many districts as possible, and distributing key infrastructure as widely as possible.”

A South Park resident identified only as “Kathleen H” remarked in written testimony that redistricting should be carried out by an independent body, and “I think they should take a blank map and choose districts in a fair, reasonable manner. Nothing that looks like a river flowing through another district!”

Every 10 years, congressional boundaries are redrawn by state legislators based on data from the census. Pennsylvania will be losing one congressional seat based on the results, bringing the total number of districts to 17. The commonwealth has lost congressional seats every 10 years since 1930, when it sent 36 congressmen to Washington, D.C. State legislative districts are being redrawn by a commission that consists of two Democrats, two Republicans and one independent.

The hearing was held in the district of state Rep. Jason Ortitay, R-Cecil, who serves on the state government committee. Ortitay said, “The testimony given today will help guide us as we move forward. With Pennsylvania losing a congressional seat due to faster growth in other parts of the country, all district lines will have to change in order to absorb this decrease. It’s imperative to get it right.”

CUSTOMER LOGIN

If you have an account and are registered for online access, sign in with your email address and password below.

NEW CUSTOMERS/UNREGISTERED ACCOUNTS

Never been a subscriber and want to subscribe, click the Subscribe button below.

Starting at $3.75/week.

Subscribe Today