Wednesday, August 15, 2001
|
Wednesday, August 15, 2001 |
| Hecht: Fayette
wins under 3-way split
By DAVE HAMRICK And JOHN MUNFORD
The state Senate's proposed district map went back to committee for changes last week, but Fayette's position on the map remained pretty much unchanged when the full Senate approved the map Friday. Legislators are redrawing both House and Senate districts in a special session, an exercise they go through every ten years to take into account population changes revealed in the U.S. Census. "I was not able to get all the changes I wanted done in our area," said Sen. Greg Hecht, who represents northern Fayette and northeastern Clayton County in the current 34th District. Under the plan, Fayette would be divided among three districts: Hecht's 34th, Republican Mitch Seabaugh's 28th, and a new 17th district that includes a small part of south Fayette between Fayetteville and Starr's Mill, and runs northeasterly through five other counties, all the way to Walton. Hecht, a Democrat from Jonesboro, would continue to represent north Fayette under the proposed plan. His district would be relatively unchanged in the redistricting process. But if new congressional districts are favorable to him, Hecht has made no secret of the fact he plans to run for Congress. Congressional lines will be redrawn in a second special session once the state Legislature districts are finished. Republican leaders have repeatedly charged that Democrats, who control both houses of the Legislature, are drawing the districts in such a way as to unfairly dilute Republican voting strength. "We will almost certainly see the Democrats in federal court," said Ralph Reed, chairman of the Georgia Republican Party, in a press release Tuesday. "This map is unconstitutional, it violates the Voting Rights Act, destroys the integrity of local communities and will not withstand federal court scrutiny." Seabaugh lost a few parts of Peachtree City while picking up parts of Pike and Troup counties. His district retains most of Peachtree City, Tyrone and Brooks, though. Seabaugh said he doesn't think the map will be approved by the U.S. Justice Department, but if it is, the lawsuits over the map will be filed after that, he added. "We have a bad map," Seabaugh said. "... I honestly don't think we'll have to run in these districts." Hecht said he believes the map is fair, and Republicans' charges concerning the Voting Rights Act are "a weak argument ... being made for political reasons only." The act prohibits redistricting that dilutes minority voting strength. Hecht also defended the splitting of 87 counties into more than one Senate district, something Republicans have criticized. "If you want to dilute the voting power of a county, just solidify it into one district and leave it standing alone as an island," he said. The reason his home county, Clayton, is powerful in the state Legislature, Hecht said, is because it is represented by a seven-member delegation. "Fayette will be a great county to contend with, with three senators in the Senate," he said. "The county will have a minimum of 12 committee assignments, a voice on Appropriations and a voice on Rules." It's also in the county's best interests to have one of those three be a Democrat, he said. "With a bipartisan delegation, no matter what happens in the Legislature, you have a voice," he said. "If you have a conservative initiative or seek funding for a project in Fayette, you gain influence with more votes." The Senate has approved its plan and is awaiting the House of Representatives' redistricting map. The Senate and House must approve each other's plans, and any changes will go to a conference committee that will iron out differences before final adoption. Meanwhile, the Senate this week has turned its attention to redrawing district lines for county commissions and school boards. Once all the state and local districts are redrawn, a second special session will be called to deal with the U.S. congressional districts. Seabaugh said he believed the state House of Representatives would vote on the Senate map either yesterday (Tuesday) or today (Wednesday).
|
||