Since Maryland Democratic Gov. Wes Moore’s redistricting commission holds its first meetings this week, we thought it was a good time to check in on the Free State’s push to draw new House maps.
The opening organizational meeting itself was uneventful. There’s also another virtual meeting scheduled for 4 p.m. today. It’s an important marker of a new stage in the effort to draw Rep. Andy Harris (R-Md.) out of his seat and create an all-Democratic House delegation.
Moore, who wants to add an extra Democratic House seat, is at loggerheads with Maryland Senate President Bill Ferguson, who thinks redrawing the lines is ill-advised and could lead to Democrats losing power.
In a bid to build public pressure on Ferguson, Moore created a commission to keep the issue in the news. But Maryland Democrats told us this week that there’s no clear path to a resolution just yet.
“We’ve got a standoff between the governor and the president of the Senate,” Rep. Kweisi Mfume (D-Md.) told us. “I have no idea what the status is right now. I can tell you that most people are confused about what’s going on.”
Most Democrats in Maryland’s congressional delegation back Moore in this fight. Sen. Angela Alsobrooks (D-Md.) is leading the commission, and Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) told us he supports a new map.
Reps. Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) and Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) are also publicly refuting Ferguson’s concerns.
“I assume where it’s going to end up is we’re going to end up putting new lines together,” Rep. Glenn Ivey (D-Md.) told us, adding he supports “trying to convert [Harris’] seat into a Democratic seat.”
But the feeling isn’t unanimous in the delegation, revealing obstacles on the route to creating a clean 8-0 Democratic sweep.
“I’ve always hated redistricting, because I hate losing parts of my district,” Mfume said.
