Gov. Lawrence J. Hogan Jr. (R) is hoping to enlist the support of two high-profile Democrats — including former President Barack Obama — in his push to bring nonpartisan redistricting to Maryland.
With the “emergency commission” that he created last year poised to release a proposed congressional map that the state could use in 2020, Hogan is asking Obama and former U.S. Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr., to throw their weight behind his efforts.
The two men are co-founders of the Washington, D.C.-based National Democratic Redistricting Committee.
The NDRC’s website claims that “Republicans have rigged our elections by gerrymandering districts all across the country. This unfair advantage is making it harder for Democrats to fight climate change, pass gun control, and ensure access to health care for everyone.”
The organization bills itself as “the centralized hub for executing a comprehensive redistricting strategy that shifts the redistricting power, creating fair districts where Democrats can compete.”
In his letters to the two men, Hogan writes, “I am in complete agreement with your goal of building a democracy where voters pick their elected representatives, not the other way around.”
Click here to read the rest of the article written by Bruce DePuyt over at Maryland Matters