Local Democrats Happy With New Legislative Map

Officials say they are pleased with changes made to the 18th legislative district.

The commission re-drawing New Jersey's state assembly districts issued its final map Sunday, with small changes being made to the 18th District, which includes East Brunswick. Under the new map, the 18th district will keep East Brunswick, Edison, Helmetta, Metuchen, South Plainfield and South River, but will now also include Highland Park. Gone from the district is Spotswood, which moved to the 14th legislative district.

Mayor David Stahl said the change works for East Brunswick, which has benefited from having State Sen. Barbara Buono, and Assemblymen Peter Barnes and Patrick Diegnan.

 “I am extremely pleased with the redistricting map. East Brunswick has been well served by Sen. Buono, and Assemblymen Diegan and Barnes. As mayor, each has always provided much assistance in whatever issue I have that needs assistance from our state government. Their commitment to helping me make East Brunswick better is admirable.”

Mr. Diegnan said he too was happy with the new map, and that he and his fellow legislators look forward to meeting Highland Park residents and leaders. He said the change keeps the progressive, education oriented nature of the district in tact

“We have such a nice district,” he said. “East Brunswick has always been a place where people want to live, and with Highland Park now part of the district, we couldn’t be happier.”

Diegnan said he, Sen. Buono, and Barnes plan to attend the next meeting of the Highland Park Borough Council. The trio also has been contacted by the borough’s school board.

“We’re excited about the addition,” said Diegnan.

Every 10 years, after the U.S. Census provides new population data, the state must re-draw the boundaries of the assembly districts to keep the population approximately equal. In New Jersey, that is done by a commission of five Democrats and five Republicans. After they proved unable to agree on a map, a judge ordered the addition of an 11th, non-partisan, member, Rutgers public policy Prof. Alan Rosenthal. After weeks of hearings, debate and discussion, he decided on Saturday to vote in favor of the map proposed by Democrats.

(A spreadsheet showing what towns are included in each of the new districts is attached at upper right, as a PDF file.) The boundaries of almost every district were changed, generally by adding or subtracting a nearby town.

The biggest change in the map includes the merging of two senators of each party in the same district. Democratic Sens. John Girgenti of Hawthorne and Robert Gordon of Fair Lawn are in the same Bergen County based district and Republican Sens. Robert Singer of Lakewood and Sean Kean of Wall Township are in the same Ocean and Monmouth based district. Girgenti has indicated to PolitickerNJ that he plans to move to Paterson to seek reelection in a Passaic County based district. Singer and Kean have not indicated their plans.

Princeton Borough and Township has been moved from the Mercer County based and Democratic leaning 15th district to a Republican leaning district straddling Mercer, Hunterdon, Somerset and Middlesex Counties. Assemblyman Reed Gusciora (D-Princeton) has told PolitickerNJ that he will move into the new 15th, which includes Trenton, to seek reelection.

Sen. Richard Codey (D-Roseland), a former governor, has seen a redrawing of his lines from a safe Democratic seat in Essex County to a competitive district saddling parts of Essex and Morris Counties. Codey’s new district loses parts of Newark and gains Republican Millburn in Essex, along with Harding, Chatham Township, East Hanover, Hanover and Madison in Morris. Codey retains several towns in his existing suburban Essex base including Livingston, West Orange, Maplewood and South Orange.

Legislative leaders have largely retained safe seats for the next decade.

The Star-Ledger quoted Rosenthal as defending his decision, saying he believed the Democrats' map was "less disruptive."

"It is a map, I believe, that gives the minority party a chance at winning control of the Legislature, even in what is essentially a Democratic state," he said.

Predictably, reaction to the plan was divided along party lines.

Republicans claimed the map puts more people in districts in south Jersey than in the north, an imbalance that may grow if the southern part of the state continues to gain population faster than the northern part.

"People in southern New Jersey will have their votes count less than people in northern New Jersey -- noting also that the population growth, we expect, will continue to happen in South Jersey,'' the GOP redistricting chairman, Assemblyman Jay Webber, told the Asbury Park Press. "And so over time, resident citizens of South Jersey will continue to have their votes undercounted as compared with their neighbors in the north.''

The Democrat's redistricting commissioner, Sen. Paul Sarlo, told the Asbury Park Press Webber's points were "sour grapes.'

Republicans could still decide to challenge the plan in court, but as of Sunday, weren't saying if they planned to do so.