PITTSBURGH (AP) – Pennsylvania already figured prominently in Democrats’ attempt to win back control of the U.S. House. A decision this week in a long-running redistricting case is set to give those efforts a boost.
The U.S. Supreme Court declined to intervene after the state’s high court declared unconstitutional Pennsylvania’s existing House map, which had been heavily gerrymandered by Republicans. A reshuffled map is expected to make several districts friendlier for Democratic candidates in November.
Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf and the leaders of the Republican-run Legislature face a court-ordered Friday deadline to find a compromise approach to drawing the new boundaries.
“It’s still early in the process … but I’m very encouraged by what this decision could mean for the people of Pennsylvania,” said Rep. Ben Ray Lujan of New Mexico, who heads Democrats’ House campaign arm.
Before the redistricting decision, Democrats had zeroed in on six Pennsylvania congressional districts out of 91 they are targeting nationwide. Only California and New York have more top targets for House Democrats.