New Jersey Has ‘to Be Open’ To Mid-decade Redistricting, Sherrill Adviser Says

NEW BRUNSWICK, New Jersey — Mid-decade redistricting is on the table in New Jersey, a top adviser to Democratic Gov.-elect Mikie Sherrill said on Tuesday. Just don’t expect it to happen before the midterms.

“I think we have to be open to it, right?” said Alex Ball, Sherrill’s campaign manager and incoming chief of staff, when asked about the prospect of mid-decade redistricting at POLITICO’s Transition of Power: What’s Next for New Jersey” event.

“If you look at what the Trump administration is doing, I think we have to take any threat of overreach, of our election system, on their part, seriously,” she added. “So, I think the governor-elect will look at all options available.”

Sherrill has previously said that she is open to mid-decade redistricting as other states push to redraw maps.

Ball pointed to Democrats’ wins further down the ballot last month, when the party picked up an unprecedented five seats to gain a supermajority in the state Assembly: “I think we have tools at our disposal, and you know, we'll make sure that we're thoughtful about them,” she said.

The process to make such a change is more complicated in New Jersey than it is in other states. Because the state Constitution mandates that congressional redistricting, drawn by a bipartisan commission, take place after the Census conducted at the beginning of each decade, a constitutional amendment would be required to alter that. In order to put such an amendment on the ballot, a three-fifths majority in both houses is required, or the Legislature can pass it two years in a row by a majority vote. Ball said that “we could take two votes next year and get it done if we needed to.”

Tim Lydon, Sherrill’s soon-to-be chief counsel, said that if a constitutional amendment is passed, a new map wouldn’t be in place by 2026 — it would be for the following cycle.

“I think any threat from the administration is serious and worth looking at, and we'll assess it as it comes,” Ball said when asked if such a move would still be worth it at that point.

Last month, Democratic state Senate President Nick Scutari dismissed the idea of redistricting in New Jersey, saying that “we’re not in a position to do that.” State Sen. Vin Gopal, the only Democratic state legislator who was on the last congressional redistricting commission four years ago, over the summer also said he opposed it.

Republicans’ efforts to redistrict are very much in flux. After much back and forth between Indiana Republicans and President Donald Trump to redistrict, state legislators released a draft congressional map that could potentially net the party two seats. And maps that could benefit Republicans in states like Utah and Texas are in limbo as legal action is pending.

Democrats across the country are grappling with how to respond to Trump’s redistricting efforts to help Republicans maintain control of the House. California Gov. Gavin Newsom successfully spearheaded Proposition 50, which had a decisive win last month, to redistrict the state in favor of Democrats. Other states, like Virginia, are looking to get involved, while other Democrats across the country are against wading into the redistricting wars.

A recent POLITICO poll found that both Democrats and Republicans support redrawing congressional districts to give their side a boost in the midterms.