 Here’s the way things are supposed to work, Friend: Voters choose their leaders through fair elections. Constituents are organized into fairly-drawn Congressional districts that are reevaluated every ten years. That ten-year cycle safeguards everyone’s right to fair representation. I have long supported Colorado’s gold standard of redistricting by an independent commission, and I still do. I will also not stand idly by when rules protecting fairness are trampled on and yet another norm is broken by President Trump. Right now, the president has called for Republican-led states like Texas, Ohio, North Carolina, and Indiana to redraw their voting maps to favor Republicans in unprecedented mid-decade redistricting. The explicit goal is to hand-pick their voters into newly aligned districts, stack the deck for upcoming elections, and shift the balance of power in Congress. Stated simply, it’s more norm-breaking, bullying behavior.
Here’s the question for Colorado — do we sit idly by or do we prepare to take these challenges to our democracy head-on? I am on Team Democracy. To protect our democracy and fairness in districting, I support a “break the glass” in case of emergency option that would enable Colorado to redraw our maps mid-decade only if the Trump agenda is successful. And making clear that we are ready to counter efforts to gain an unfair advantage by Republicans is our best strategy for trying to stop them. I recognize that adjusting our maps wouldn’t be a quick, one-step process. And that’s a good thing. Our state’s redistricting process puts you — the voters — in the driver’s seat. Over 55% of voters would need to agree at the ballot box to amend our Constitution and allow for a narrow exception to the ten-year redistricting cycle, specifically to combat other states’ cynical tactics. Then, the soonest any new maps would be able to go into effect is 2028. That means any new maps will start with a clear mandate from Coloradans and time for proper implementation. With you for democracy, Phil |
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