Montgomery County state legislators at the National Conference of State Legislators in Boston this week joined a rally in support of the Texas Democrats who left their state to protest new gerrymandering efforts.
“Some of the Texas senators were at the conference. They organized an event and asked others to show up in solidarity,” explained Maryland Delegate David Moon (D-20). “It was a whole press conference” that included representatives from 35 states.
Texas Democratic legislators left their state capital to avoid voting on a Congressional redistricting map that would have given the Republicans more seats. By leaving the state, the Texas statehouse did not have a quorum to conduct business.
Maryland Lawmakers Speak Out
The message at the rally was clear, Moon said. “It was a little bit of a warning for the rest of us.”
According to Moon and Delegate Jarod Solomon (D-18), both who were at the rally, the accepted practice throughout the country is for states to redistrict once a decade. “It’s been an unspoken rule,” Moon said.
Traditionally states redistrict following the census taken every decade. Population shifts often dictate the changes.
If states can redistrict to gain more seats for their party and a majority in Congress, “they are trying to steal the midterm elections,” Solomon said.
The Gerrymander Plan
“The President literally contacted” Texas Greg Governor Abbott to tell him to get more Republican votes, Solomon said. Vice President J.D. Vance “is flying around the country, they are trying to do this in as many states as they can to rig the election.”
Both Moon and Solomon said they hoped Texas and other state legislators would not redistrict in favor of their party, but if that does happen, they will not sit by.
“We are going to fight back in Maryland,” Solomon said. He said he agreed with U.S. Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) that redistricting should be regulated on a federal level. However, he said, “If other states choose to redistrict, Maryland will too.”
New Legislation May Spark Solidarity
Moon pointed to two bills currently in the works. One mandates that states may only redistrict once a decade. He is hopeful that if Maryland approves that bill, “the other 49 states would join.”
The other bill will enable Maryland to redistrict if another state does.
“It is my strong belief that all states have to be equal in this,” Moon said.
Texas Democrats Play ‘Hold ‘Em’
The Texas Democrats he met “were 100% defiant. They were fighting for the democratic rights of their constituents,” Solomon said, who added that he “backed them 100%.”
“What is going on in Texas isn’t just going to impact the people of Texas, it will affect everyone.”
