By RICK MILLER
Olean Star
ALBANY — Assemblyman Joe Sempolinski, R — Canisteo, joined Rep. Mike Lawler, NY-17, members of the Senate and Assembly Republican conferences Monday to oppose reported efforts by Albany Democrats to advance constitutional amendments that would redraw New York’s congressional districts and weaken the state’s independent redistricting process.
Recent reports indicate that legislative Democrats may introduce multiple constitutional amendments before the end of the legislative session in an effort to redraw electoral maps mid-decade and circumvent the Independent Redistricting Commission, Sempolinski said.
“New Yorkers voted to place safeguards in our constitution to prevent partisan gerrymandering and ensure a fair redistricting process,” Sempolinski said. “Now, it appears Albany Democrats are once again looking for ways to change the rules for political gain. The constitution should not be rewritten every time one party wants a different election outcome.”
In an interview with the Olean Star on Tuesday, Sempolinski was asked whether the latest round of state redistricting wasn’t started by President Trump last year when he urged Texas and other Republican states to redistrict with the hopes of the GOP retaining control of the House this November. Generally in mid-term elections, the president’s party often loses House seats.
“The people that started this are the Democrats in New York,” Sempolinski told the Star. Democrats’ mid-cycle redistricting for the 2024 election helped them pick up four congressional seats, he said.
Sempolinski and other Assembly and Senate Republicans are expecting a constitutional amendment to be presented and voted on before the end of the week.
Sempolinski said it’s ironic that Democrats are complaining about other states redistricting before the end of the decade “because they’ve already done it. They are continuing to do what they have done all along, rig the maps.”
The New York Democrats “did it before Texas” did it at the urging of the president. “It’s pretty rich to hear someone who has been doing this for a long time complain about it now. Them protecting democracy from Republicans is absurd. They forgot what happened two years ago.”
The New York State Constitution currently prohibits partisan gerrymandering and established the Independent Redistricting Commission to create congressional and legislative district maps through a transparent process, Sempolinski said. Any constitutional amendment would need to pass in two consecutive legislative sessions before being submitted to voters for approval in a statewide referendum.
The assemblyman noted that attempts to manipulate congressional boundaries are not new. In 2022, New York’s congressional map was struck down by the courts as an unconstitutional partisan gerrymander. Congressional district lines were subsequently revised again in 2024.
“This is not about responding to actions in other states or events in Washington,” Sempolinski said. “Albany Democrats have been trying to redraw congressional districts for years. New Yorkers deserve fair representation, not districts designed to benefit one political party.”
The assemblyman emphasized that any effort to weaken the state’s constitutional protections against partisan gerrymandering would ultimately be decided by voters if constitutional amendments move forward.
“At the end of the day, the people of New York will have the final say,” Sempolinski said. “I trust voters far more than I trust politicians drawing maps behind closed doors. We should leave the constitution alone and preserve the independent process that New Yorkers demanded.”
Assembly Republicans pledged to continue opposing any attempts to undermine the Independent Redistricting Commission. They called on legislative leaders to focus on issues that directly impact New Yorkers, including affordability, public safety and economic growth.
