Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., is steering six figures from his political operation toward defending Black representation in the South, as a wave of Republican-led redistricting threatens Democratic seats ahead of the midterms.
The money, first reported by MS NOW, will go to Black lawmakers targeted by new GOP maps, Southern state Democratic parties and allied groups, according to an aide.
Congressional redistricting could play a major role in influencing the outcome of this fall’s midterms at a time when Democrats are looking to win back power in Congress for the final two years of President Donald Trump’s term.
Republicans, with Trump’s urging, have worked this cycle to redraw a series of Democratic held seats to make them more favorable to the GOP and cushion their margin of control in the House. That drive started in Texas, and eventually flowed down to other states like North Carolina and Missouri. Democrats answered in kind by overhauling maps in California to try and offset the changes.
Political calculations became more complicated earlier this spring, when the U.S. Supreme Court issued a major ruling that the national Republican party hailed as a win for “anyone who opposes racial gerrymandering,” and which cleared the way for several GOP-led states to break apart Democratic districts with large minority populations. It amounts to a potentially decisive break for Republicans as they try to hold their narrow House majority.
“The Supreme Court makes rulings, but the American people can make movements, and the midterms must now be a movement election to defend Black representation and stand up for the principles of our democracy,” Booker said in a statement.