Proposed redistricting of legislative seats in Georgia include some major changes in lines affecting lawmakers representing East Cobb.
As a special session got underway on Wednesday, legislators for both parties proposed new boundaries, based on the recent 2020 Census.
Republicans hold majorities in both the state House and Senate.
Since the last redistricting after the 2010 Census, most of East Cobb has been included in Senate District 32, which also includes slivers of Sandy Springs and North Fulton.
Since 2017, that seat has been held by Republican Kay Kirkpatrick.
The Democratic map revealed last week would keep those lines essentially the same, leaving all of the 32nd in East Cobb.
A map released Thursday by the Republican Senate Reapportionment Committee would slice up East Cobb into three Senate districts. The 32nd would include areas of Northeast Cobb and part of Cherokee County.
Senate District 6, which has been held by Democrat Jen Jordan, a candidate for Georgia Attorney General in 2022, is being proposed to include the Cumberland area and East Cobb closest to the City of Marietta and along part of the boundary with the Chattahoochee River.
Senate District 56, represented by North Fulton Republican John Albers, would be redrawn to include part of Northeast Cobb, south Cherokee and the Roswell area.
In the House, a GOP map still includes five seats in the East Cobb area: District 37, held by Democrat Mary Frances Williams, and Districts 43-46, occupied by Republicans.
But notably, the Republican proposal drew two longtime GOP incumbents into the same district, State Rep. Matt Dollar of District 45 and State Rep. Sharon Cooper of District 43.
They are co-sponsors of the current East Cobb Cityhood bill that will be taken up in the 2022 legislative session, and they took part in a virtual town hall on the subject in April.
But on Thursday, Dollar announced he would not be seeking re-election after nearly 20 years in the legislature.
He did not explain his reasons in a response to the MDJ, but said he would be proud to be represented by Cooper.
She has been a lawmaker since 1997 and is the House Health and Human Services Committee Chairwoman, but has had two closely contested wins over Democrat Luisa Wakeman in 2018 and 2020.
East Cobb News has left a message with Dollar seeking comment.
The other two East Cobb House seats are held by Don Parsons (District 44) and John Carson District 46), who would continue to have safe seats in either of the proposed maps.
In September, Senate Republicans proposed a Congressional redistricting draft that would redraw the 6th District seat, held by Marietta Democrat Lucy McBath, into a more Republican area that would continue to include East Cobb.
In late October, legislative Democrats proposed their own draft that would keep the 6th largely as it is, including East Cobb, North Fulton, Sandy Springs and North DeKalb.
The special reapportionment session is expected to last at least through next week.
In January, when lawmakers reconvene for their 2022 session, they will conduct local reapportionment.
Cobb commissioner districts and school board posts will be redrawn by members of the county’s legislative delegation.
For more on reapportionment, click here.
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- Cobb school board member announces for state school superintendent
- GOP Senate Congressional redistricting map takes aim at 6th District
- Kemp calls reapportionment special session for November
- UGA football great Herschel Walker to run for U.S. Senate
- Voting information for 2021 Cobb elections
- Cobb law firm to draw school board reapportionment map
- Army veteran running for 6th Congressional District seat
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- East Cobb Politics and Elections Guide
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The districts need to reflect the overall split of voters within the map area to ensure representation for all parties reflects.
So, if there are 1M people total that need to be split into 5 districts of 200K each.
If 2 districts need to represent democrats (350K people) and 3 need to represent republicans (510K people), the map needs to be drawn in such a way as to make that possible.
If another party needs representation for the remaining 160K people, that needs to happen in the interest of fairness for a minority, though I doubt there are 160K people who would vote for a 3rd party.
I’m fairly certain that the district lines could be best drawn impartially with the aid of a computer program run by non-partisan scientists with oversight (not overruling) by any political groups who want to watch.
Gerrymandering for political suppression cannot be allowed.