Redistricting in America

North Carolina Republican lawmakers are stretching out their schedule for tackling the thorny issue of redistricting. The chairman of the House Redistricting Committee said Thursday he and his Senate counterpart would release complete proposed maps for General Assembly districts July 11 — 10 days later than previously announced. Now, only maps for congressional districts would be released next week.

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Hispanic advocacy groups in California are alarmed about new political maps that sketch proposed boundaries for congressional and state legislative districts, saying the changes will disenfranchise the fastest-growing segment of the population in a state where the number of Hispanic politicians has soared during the past two decades.The debate over that concern is likely to escalate in the coming weeks, as an independent redistricting commission takes public comment and wrestles with revisions before voting on a final version Aug. 15.

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On the homeground of the state Senate’s redistricting chairman, Christian radio portends the Second Coming, politicians refer to the “Yellow River Code” of being true to your word, and the age-old tension between city and countryside dominates talk of redrawing political lines. As Florida lawmakers convened their second redistricting hearing a few miles from the Alabama line Tuesday, they listened to a steady stream of contradictory pleas.

Michigan Republicans released an entirely unsurprising draft congressional map on Friday, with the two big changes being the drawing together of Democratic Reps. Sandy Levin and Gary Peters and the shoring up of GOP Rep. Thaddeus McCotter. But a closer look at the proposed map shows it as illustrative of the redistricting challenges the GOP faces this year.

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The state House of Representatives signed off on a plan Tuesday to redraw its legislative lines and create a seventh congressional district, centered in Horry County and running along the North Carolina border. The plan requires one more perfunctory vote before heading to the Senate. But some are disappointed with the plan, including the state Democratic Party, whose chairman plans to sue.