State Rep. Antonio F.D. Cabral, (D-New Bedford), has been appointed to serve on the joint legislative committee on redistricting, a powerful position in the drafting of the new district lines for all Massachusetts state representatives, state senators and U.S. congressmen for the next decade. There are 7 senators and 21 representatives on the committee.
According to a statement posted at the Representative Cabral’s website , “The Special Joint Committee on Redistricting will study and propose a new division of the Commonwealth into 9 Congressional districts under the United States Constitution, 40 Senatorial and 8 Councillor districts under Section 2 of Article CI of the Amendments to the Constitution, as amended, and 160 Representative districts under section 1 of said Article CI.
“The Joint Committee on Redistricting has created this website to provide information to the citizens of Massachusetts about the redistricting process. This site includes maps, laws, rules, census data, documents, historical perspectives and a calendar of events and hearings for the Joint Committee. We welcome all public comments and participation during the redistricting process.”
The committee has been challenged for transparency after Democratic members of the Legislature overruled measures in the House and Senate to appoint an independent panel to oversee redistricting.
The Massachusetts Legislature is charged with drafting the 160 state representative districts, the 40 state senate districts and the federal congressional districts after every U.S. Census.
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