McKean County’s Democratic Party chairman says he supports the state’s redrawn congressional map, which he says evens out the political playing field.
The map released Monday by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court alters the Fifth District, transforming it into the 15th District and pushing Potter County into the 12th District.
“I think that the new PA 15 Congressional District levels the playing field after years gerrymandering by the GOP,” said party chairman Jeff Carson. “This will finally give any Democrat running in the general election a better chance to take the district.”
The new district includes the counties of McKean, Elk, Cameron, Venango, Forest, Warren, Jefferson, Indiana and Armstrong, and parts of Cambria, Butler and Centre counties.
The Fifth District included all or portions of the counties of Cameron, Centre, Clarion, Clearfield, Clinton, Crawford, Elk, Erie, Forest, Huntingdon, Jefferson, McKean, Potter, Tioga, Venango and Warren.
As a result of a lawsuit alleging gerrymandering, the state Supreme Court had ordered the congressional map to be redrawn. Maps had been drawn and submitted, but none passed muster with Gov. Tom Wolf, who then submitted his own for consideration.
With no map meeting the approval of all interested parties, the state Supreme Court released its own version on Monday. As of now, this is the version in effect statewide.
Just how congressional races will look like across the four-county region is a guess –– at least for now.
The primary election is May 15. Candidates have until March 20 to file petitions to run in the primary election, said Wanda Murren, spokeswoman for the Pennsylvania Department of State. The deadline had been Feb. 27.
Before the new maps, three candidates were facing off in the primary election in hopes of going up against U.S. Rep. Glenn Thompson, R-State College, in the November general election. Now, former U.S. government employee Wade Jodun and Penn State professor Marc Friedenberg, both Democrats, are out of the district. They will no longer run against Kerith Strano Taylor, a Democrat.
Friedenberg confirmed that news with The Era on Tuesday, saying he could now be facing U.S. Rep. Tom Marino, R-Lycoming County, in the newly drawn 12th District, which stretches from State College down to around Lewistown and up by Sayre.
“I think it’s a change for the better. The map is now no longer illegal gerrymandered and allows everyone in Pennsylvania a more representative and proportional vote,” Friedenberg said.
Jodun could not be immediately reached for comment Tuesday.
The Department of State is going with the new redistricting maps, though there could be some legal proceedings, Murren said. Republican leaders have indicated they will look to the federal court to block new maps, saying that the constitutional authority to draw congressional districts falls to legislatures rather than courts.
Acting Secretary of State Robert Torres said that voters would not experience changes at individual polling places, and results would remain the same at precincts.
“It has absolutely no effect on any other races at all,” Murren said.
Micah Sims, executive director of Common Cause Pennsylvania, said the maps provide much more competitive districts than previously.
“Pennsylvanians have made it clear that they want maps that are fair to all, and we believe these maps have put the state closer to that reality,” Sims said. “The Court’s maps embrace the neutral criteria of compactness, contiguity, communities of interest and minimal county and municipal splits, which is good for Pennsylvania. We were pleased to see that our core values of fairness and competitiveness were accomplished.”
