House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries announced on Monday that he’s deploying Rep. Joe Morelle this week to meet with New York Gov. Kathy Hochul and state legislators about mid-decade redistricting in the state.
Jeffries and Morelle, both New York Democrats, said in a joint statement the effort is a response to the Supreme Court’s decision last week weakening a section of the Voting Rights Act, a landmark 1965 civil rights law that prohibits discrimination in voting. The 6-3 ruling strikes down a majority-Black, Democrat-held district in Louisiana. And it could lead to similar districts being drawn out of existence in multiple Republican-led states ahead of the 2026 midterm elections.
“While far-right extremists on the Supreme Court have twice recklessly cleared the path for partisan gerrymandering, Democrats refuse to unilaterally disarm,” Jeffries said. “This is just the beginning. Across the nation, we will sue, we will redraw and we will win. House Democrats will not allow a MAGA majority to be built on rigged maps and the dilution of Black voting strength.”
Morelle is the top Democrat on the House Administration Committee, which has jurisdiction over federal elections, and the former majority leader of the New York State Assembly. He’ll meet with Hochul, also a Democrat, and other state leaders on Tuesday.
