Public News Service: House Republicans Release Draft Proposals for PA Congressional Map

HARRISBURG, Pa. — Pennsylvania House Republicans have revealed a preliminary congressional district map, and although groups are happy to see it was drawn by a citizen, some are concerned the process lacked transparency.

The map was created by Lehigh County’s Amanda Holt, a former Republican county commissioner. The Princeton Gerrymandering Project found the map offers seven districts safe for Republicans and five safe for Democrats, with five others being competitive.

Khalif Ali, executive director of Common Cause Pennsylvania, said the map in its current form does not allow for a community-level dive, making it harder for residents to provide feedback.

“We don’t have the underlying shapefiles,” Ali explained. “We have no way again to evaluate whether and how this map divides communities of color. Particularly in Philadelphia, Allegheny County, Lancaster, Dauphin, York, all those counties are really relevant when we’re talking about this question of racial equity and adhering to the Voting Rights Act.”