Black Democrats say Republicans’ claim of underrepresentation in Congress is garbage and that its Congressional Black Caucus members are being targeted.
Rep. Troy Carter, Louisiana Democrat, called the GOP’s point “hogwash.”
The 119th Congress has a record 67 Black lawmakers, with 62 being Democrats and members of the CBC, making them 12.2% of congressional membership.
According to the Pew Research Center, Black Americans make up 14.4% of the country’s population. Among Black voters, 83% favor the Democratic Party, while 12% identify with the Republican Party.
However, less than 1% of Black Republicans, five lawmakers, serve in Congress.
Republicans list several deep blue states, namely Massachusetts, California, Illinois, New Jersey, Connecticut, New York and Washington, where GOP voters represent 35% to 45% of registered voters but have barely any representation, sometimes zero, in their state delegations.
Republicans say the numbers deal them unfair representation in Congress and that Democrats’ complaints about the White House and Republicans’ actions to redistrict in states with GOP-controlled legislatures are laughable.
“The gerrymander in California is outrageous. Of their 52 congressional districts, nine of them are Republican,” Vice President J.D. Vance said in July. “That means 17% of their delegation is Republican when Republicans regularly win 40% of the vote in that state. How can this possibly be allowed?”
During a CBC press conference on Tuesday, Mr. Carter said, “Give me a break. Look at the data, not the rhetoric. Look at the data. It doesn’t support that claim, and it’s one thing to now pivot from reality because Donald Trump asked you to and it’s another thing to look at the census.”
He added, “Look at the numbers, look at the maps as they are. You didn’t hear any of these arguments until roughly five weeks ago, when Donald Trump said, ’I need to get five more votes out of Texas.’ These manufactured arguments were nonexistent.”
Following the 2020 census, Florida gained one seat and Texas gained two seats, while New York and California lost one seat each.
In May 2022, the Census Bureau released its undercount and overcount rates by state.
States whose populations were undercounted were: Arkansas by 5.04%, Florida by 3.48%, Illinois by 1.97%, Mississippi by 4.11%, Tennessee by 4.78% and Texas by 1.92%.
States whose populations were overcounted were: Delaware by 5.45%, Hawaii by 6.79%, Massachusetts by 2.24%, Minnesota by 3.84%, New York by 3.44%, Ohio by 1.49%, Rhode Island by 5.05% and Utah by 2.59%.
Congressional Black Caucus members on Tuesday decried redistricting efforts by Republicans as a “racist” plan that has threatened the seats of CBC lawmakers.
Black Democratic lawmakers, many of whom represent House districts where state legislatures with GOP majorities have redrawn congressional maps, say they intend to fight the maps in court and protest them in the streets.
The GOP-controlled Legislature in Texas launched the initial map redraws a month ago when it drew a map designed to give Republicans a better chance in districts represented by Democratic Reps. Al Green, Marc Veasey, Julie Johnson, Greg Casar and Lloyd Doggett.
More recently, the GOP-controlled Legislature in Missouri approved a map that helped Republicans draw an additional district more favorable to their party.
Mr. Veasey called the Republican redistricting efforts in his state and other red states a “racist plan that they are doing nationwide, plain and simple.”
He said the White House is trying to “rig the maps” because the GOP’s recently passed tax cut package isn’t getting support from the American people.
“Nobody was doing middecade redistricting in the late 1700s, nobody was doing it in the 1800s, nobody was doing it in the early 1900s. [Former Rep. Tom DeLay] did it initially, and now Trump is doing it,” he said.
Mid-decade congressional redistricting actually has a relatively long history.
According to the Congressional Research Service, such redistricting was common during the 19th century, but it seldom occurred during the 20th century.
In 1804 and 1808, New York drew congressional lines not related to any population shifts. This congressional map redrawing is referenced by some experts as the first example of mid-decade redistricting.
One study cited by the CRS found that at least one state redrew its congressional lines every year between 1872 and 1896.
Ohio, for example, drew congressional district boundaries seven times between 1878 and 1892 and held five straight House elections under different district maps.
• Kerry Picket can be reached at kpicket@washingtontimes.com.