NEW YORK, NY – [Photos: Courtesy of M. Tannousis]
Assemblyman Michael Tannousis (R,C-Staten Island/Brooklyn) condemned a proposed constitutional amendment that would make it easier to redraw congressional district lines in the middle of the decade, calling the measure a blatant political power grab that ignores the will of New York voters.
In 2014, New Yorkers voted to create an Independent Redistricting Commission to take lawmakers out of the map-drawing process. When Albany lawmakers later attempted to weaken those safeguards, voters rejected the proposal in 2021.
Now, lawmakers are advancing another constitutional amendment that would allow congressional districts to be redrawn if another state redraws its maps.
“The people of New York have already spoken,” said Tannousis. “They voted for independent redistricting because they didn’t want lawmakers drawing district lines for their own benefit. Now, because some lawmakers don’t like the current maps, they’re trying to change the rules again.”
Tannousis pointed to a series of recent efforts to redraw congressional districts, including a lawsuit filed earlier this year seeking to redraw New York’s 11th Congressional District, which includes Staten Island and is represented by Rep. Nicole Malliotakis.
“This isn’t about fairness. It’s not about protecting democracy. It’s about power,” Tannousis said. “After rejecting maps drawn by the Independent Redistricting Commission and attempting to redraw districts through the courts, they’re now trying to rewrite the constitution to get the outcome they want.”
The assemblyman warned that allowing lawmakers to continually revisit district lines whenever political circumstances change would undermine public confidence in elections and diminish the voices of communities like Staten Island and Southern Brooklyn.
“They don’t like the results, so they want to change the rules,” Tannousis said. “That’s not reform. That’s manipulation. Lawmakers shouldn’t choose their voters. Voters should choose their lawmakers.”
Tannousis pledged to continue opposing any effort that weakens New York’s independent redistricting process and the protections voters have repeatedly supported.
