Official: New Congressional Lines Can be Drawn to Meet June Primary Deadline

Albany, NY – The Assembly Chair of a task force on redistricting says he thinks new congressional lines can be drawn in time to meet a June primary deadline imposed by a federal judge, but he admits it will be weeks before the public can view them. Capitol Correspondent Karen DeWitt reports...

The Assembly Chair of a task force on redistricting says he thinks new congressional lines can be drawn in time to meet a June primary deadline imposed by a federal judge, but he admits it will be weeks before the public can view them.

State lawmakers, who have already drawn legislative district lines that Governor Cuomo says are "unacceptable" because of partisan gerrymandering, have yet to release maps for proposed new congressional lines.

A federal judge has ruled that primaries for congressional seats must be on June 26th. Assembly task force chair Jack McEneny says he thinks the proposed maps can be finished by late February and voted on by early March...

"I think we can finish the Congressional lines in time, in fact we have to," says McEneny. "We are virtually under a court order to do it."

While the date for the federal election primaries has been settled by a judge, the date for state legislative primaries is still up in the air.

Assembly Democrats want all of the primaries on the same day in late June - Republicans had favored an August date. No agreement has been worked out yet.

In Albany, I'm Karen DeWitt.