New Jersey Democratic Legislative Leaders are preparing to Diminish the Power of their State Party Chairman as well as Republicans, if they can get New Jersey Voters to go along with them. Senate President Steve Sweeney (D) and Assembly Speaker Craig Coughlin (D) next month Plan to put a Constitutional Amendment, NJ ACR60 (18R), up for a Vote in Both Houses of the Legislature that would Overhaul how New Jersey Draws its State Legislative Districts.
The Amendment, which was First proposed Three years ago, but Stalled, would make several Changes to the Current Redistricting Process. But the Biggest Overhauls would Strip Democratic Rivals of Power while hurting any chances Republicans could have to Gain more Power in the Legislature.
An 11-Member Panel traditionally Redraws New Jersey‘s Legislative Districts every 10 years. Five Members are Appointed by the State Democratic Chairman and Five by the State Republican chairman. A Tiebreaker Member is Appointed by the Chief Justice of the State Supreme Court. Under the Proposed Amendment, the Number of Commissioners would increase to 13. Each Party Chairman would get just Two Appointments, while the Senate President, Assembly Speaker, and Minority Leaders in Both Houses would get Two Picks each. The State Supreme Court Justice would Appoint the 13th Member at the Outset of the Process.
The latest push for the Amendment, which Voters would have to Approve, comes as Sweeney and Gov. Phil Murphy (D) have been at Odds over everything from the State Budget to Sweeney’s proposed Cuts to Public Workers’ Retirement Benefits. State Democratic Chairman John Currie is a Murphy Ally, so Sweeney has reason not to want him choosing who Redraws Lawmakers’ Districts.
The Proposal would also require Legislative District Maps to Reflect a Political Party “Performance Index.” At least 10 of the 40 State Legislative Districts would have to be considered “Competitive.” Determining what Constitutes a Competitive District would be Based how each Political Party Performed in the previous Decade of Elections for President, U.S. Senate, and Governor. New Jersey has 900,000 more Registered Democrats than Republicans, so the Amendment would tilt the Process to Democrats’ Advantage.
“This will give us an opportunity for an accurate portrayal of what the electorate is in New Jersey. I mean, we have 11 out of 12 congressmen,” Sen. Nicholas Scutari (D), the Amendment’s Prime Sponsor in the Senate, said, referring to this Month’s House Races in which Democrats flipped Four of Five Republican-held Seats in the State’s House Delegation. “Why do you think that is?“
Sweeney (D-Gloucester), Coughlin (D-Middlesex), and Scutari (D-Union), met last week in Atlantic City during the New Jersey State League of Municipalities Conference and discussed the Amendment, Scutari Confirmed, though he said they talked about other Topics as well.
There are Two ways to get the Amendment onto the Ballot: If Both Houses Pass the Measure by a Three-Fifths Majority in December, it will go on the Ballot next November. That, however, is unlikely, since All Republicans and Murphy’s Democratic Allies will Oppose it. Sweeney and Coughlin can also get it on the Ballot next November if the Legislature Approves the Amendment with simple Majorities Two Calendar years in a row. That means they can Pass it in December and then again in January.
Committee Meetings on the Amendment could start next Monday and Sweeney and Coughlin Plan to Post the Amendment for its First Vote on Dec. 17th. Scutari Confirmed there are plans to Vote on the Amendment soon, but Demurred about Specific Dates.
In December 2015, before Coughlin Ascended to the Speakership, Sweeney and then-Speaker Vincent Prieto (D-Hudson) attempted to send Voters a nearly Identical Amendment. It Advanced through an Assembly Committee, but the effort soon Stalled. “They tried to do this in the past and couldn’t get the numbers to pass it a couple of years ago,” Senate minority leader Tom Kean Jr. (R-Union) said. “There was bipartisan opposition then and I would anticipate there will be bipartisan opposition again.”
Assembly Minority Leader Jon Bramnick (R-Union) called the effort “a disgrace.” “You’ve got a Democratic state and they want to make sure that it’s a one-party system forever. This is the opposite of what the national conversation should be,” Bramnick said in an interview. “Instead of making things more competitive, they want to make it less competitive in a state that’s difficult for Republicans to begin with. “This is what you get when you get a one-party system: A monopoly. And it’s dangerous, in my judgment, to democracy,” he said “They don’t want any possible chance that anything could happen where we could get a fair map.”
Academics like Monmouth University Polling Institute Director Patrick Murray and Ingrid Reed, the Former Director of the Eagleton Institute’s New Jersey Project, spoke Out against the Amendment in 2015 and have not Changed their Positions.
The Performance Index Provision is supposed to be Modeled after a “Fairness Test” devised by the late Princeton Professor Donald Stokes, who Served as the Redistricting Tiebreaker in 1981 and 1991. But Murray said the Amendment Perverts what Stokes intended by Basing the Performance Index on Votes for President and U.S. Senate instead of State Legislative Elections. Murray said New Jersey Voters will be asked to Approve an Amendment that Creates “Competitive” Districts when, in fact, those Districts will favor Democrats.
“The constitutional amendment is worded in such a way as to pull the wool over voters’ eyes,” Murray said. “This is Democrats being overly greedy for no good reason. It’s almost certain that they will do well with the next map and there are less egregious ways to prioritize the fairness metric. This just further erodes public trust in government for little actual gain.”
NYC Wins When Everyone Can Vote! Michael H. Drucker
