Reuters: Colorado leads U.S. states with first look at new congressional districts

(Reuters) – An independent commission in Colorado will reveal a preliminary map of new congressional districts next week, putting the state at the forefront of efforts to draw battle lines for the 2022 U.S. election and strip party politics from the process.

With Democrats holding a slim 10-seat majority in the U.S. House of Representatives, the once-a-decade redistricting underway across the country is being closely watched for clues about which party could gain an advantage heading into next year’s high-stakes midterm contests.

Colorado will release its initial map on Wednesday, the first state to do so this year. For the first time, an independent redistricting commission in the state is drawing the lines, offering an aggressively non-partisan approach in contrast to most states where lawmakers in the majority produce maps favoring their party.

“Colorado is modeling how the country could be governing itself in the future,” said Kathay Feng, the national redistricting director for good-government watchdog Common Cause.

“It is an explicit rejection of the scorched-earth tactic that has been used by some party leaders, a way of demonstrating that we can bring people back to the table and make democracy work,” Feng said.