Judge: Redistricting wrong, but not illegal

It is disappointing that a court would rule gerrymandering does not violate the state constitution.

There is good news and bad news for those who believe the most recent Congressional redistricting plan performed by the Pennsylvania Legislature was horribly mangled to favor Republicans.

The good news? Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court Judge P. Kevin Brobson agrees with you.

The bad news? It still doesn’t violate the state constitution. In other words, tough toenails.

We’re guessing the judge did not use that kind of schoolyard talk in his ruling. Too bad. He did just about everything else.

In the suit brought by the League of Woman voters vs. the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the judge concurred with the underpinnings of the group’s argument.

He ruled that the map drawn up by the Legislature in 2011 to reflect the changes in the 2010 census, does indeed intentionally discriminate “so as to grant Republican candidates an advantage in certain districts within the Commonwealth.”

A victory for the League of Woman Voters, and those who believe that the redistricting in effect disenfranchises many Pennsylvania voters by making their votes inconsequential by stacking the deck in certain districts to favor Republican candidates.

Republicans control both the House and Senate in the Pennsylvania Legislature. No one should be surprised that politics played a role in redistricting. And no one should expect that the result would be any different if the Democrats held power. Both sides play this game.

What is surprising, and, frankly, disappointing, is to hear a judge confirm all this and still rule the process does not violate the state constitution.

Judge Brobson’s words could not be more clear. “The 2011 plan was drawn to give Republicans an advantage … Partisan considerations are evident in the enacted 2011 plan such that the 2011 plan overall favors the Republican Party in certain congressional districts.”

That is what most people refer to as “gerrymandering,” the process of intentionally bending the shape of a district to favor one party.

Nowhere would that be more evident than in the 7th Congressional District. Through the wonders of gerrymandering, the seat held by Republican U.S. Rep. Pat Meehan zigs and zags its way across parts of five counties.

Judge Brobson probably had that in mind when he noted that “a lot can and has been said about the 2100 Plan, much of which is unflattering and yet justified.”

Just not enough to rule the whole process unconstitutional.

Brobson was tasked with hearing testimony and making a recommendation to the state Supreme Court, where the case is now being fast-tracked.

Democrats hold a 5-2 majority on the state high court, which has scheduled oral arguments for Jan. 17. But we don’t want to see the Supreme Court merely take a partisan stand and invalidate the latest redistricting simply because it would boost Democrats. They should do it because it’s the right thing to do.

Legally, Brobson is correct. In effect the judge is siding with those who argue that partisanship is an integral part of the redistricting process. The question is how much is too much?

Which is perhaps the best reason we’ve heard to get the Legislature out of this process entirely.

That is the goal of a group called Fair Districts PA. They are pushing a legislative solution to get the Legislature out of the redistricting business. They suggest making redistricting the domain of an 11-member independent, non-partisan commission, starting with the results of the upcoming 2020 census.

It won’t be easy. To do that supporters will need to pass an amendment to the state constitution. And to do that the Legislature would have to approve bills in two successive sessions just to get the measure in front of the voters via referendum by 2020.

We won’t hold our breath on that. This is the same Legislature that has its hands full every summer just trying to pass a budget and keep the lights on in the Capitol.

For now the case goes to the state Supreme Court. Is it possible they could toss out the 2011 redistricting plan in time for the crucial 2018 mid-term elections? Yes.

Do we think they will? Remember, justice is blind. It can see that a redistricting plan was done to favor one party. It just can’t see that the process violated the constitution.