The Boston Globe is reporting that, “Following a one-week public comment period, the redistricting panel voted on Tuesday to accept the proposed maps with a handful of revisions, including one aimed at strengthening the voting power of the Latino community in Chelsea.”
So, what are the revisions that made it to the redistricting? Where are they listed?
Please share widely!
In part
However, the committee agreed to move one heavily Latino populated precinct in Chelsea back into the Second Suffolk District, represented currently by Rep. Eugene O’Flaherty, after that neighborhood had been shifted in the first draft to the First Suffolk District, represented by Rep. Carlo Basile.
The committee received a petition signed by more than 700 residents, as well as a request from the Chelsea City Council and Rep. Eugene O’Flaherty to make the change.
“We would like to keep the Latinos in Chelsea more intact,” Moran said, suggesting that now the Latino population will have significant influence in both districts.
Rep. Stephen Kulik said the town of Plainfield, with its 648 residents, was also moved back into the First Franklin District to be reunited with neighboring communities such as Cummington and Ashfield, with which it shares cultural and economic ties, as well as regional schools and mutual aid agreements.
“I think by making the switch, we enhance and maintain strong community ties in that region,” Kulik said.
The final change to the House map came in Marlborough, represented by Republican Rep. Steven Levy, where House Minority Leader Brad Jones said the updated plan reunites some precincts that were proposed to be separated and makes the district more compact.
The Senate map reflected one change in Boston where the committee shifted one majority-minority populated precinct along Blue Hill Avenue in Dorchester and Mattapan back into the Second Suffolk district, represented by Sen. Sonia Chang-Diaz, having a cascading effect into two neighboring districts in Norfolk County.
And here’s the story behind the Chelsea story from the Chelsea Collaborative.
WHEN WE ORGANIZE WE WIN!
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In a true testament to the strength of community organizing, the Chelsea Collaborative’s Chelsea Voter Initiative (CVI) responded by mobilizing the Latino and larger community to this late addition to the redistricting plan which would have been a huge blow to the voice and the voting power of the Latino community in Chelsea.
After 2 days of the release of the report, a delegation of 15 Latino community leaders were meeting with Representative Michael Moran, the head of the Redistricting Committee, to express their serious concerns about the potential relocation. We brought this to the city’s streets, the churches, the Spanish and English language media and to local and state government. Within 3 days we collected over 800 signatures on a petition and over 150 individual letters from voters of that neighborhood. We organized 100s of phone calls and dozens of emails to the Redistricting Committee. At the CVI City Councillors Candidates’ Forum, the candidates were asked their position on the proposed redistricting plan. Out of this came a unanimous Chelsea City Council resolution against the relocation. The Collaborative called on Representative O’Flaherty to meet with concerned voters and political leaders to urge that he advocate to keep the district in Chelsea. Representative Eugene O’Flaherty wrote a letter opposing the late redistricting proposal which complemented the groundswell of community opposition. We are grateful for the support of former City Councillors Roy Avellaneda and Juan R. Vega and our partners ¿Oiste? and NUBE.
Thank you Judy for finding this, and thank you to the State House News Service for being the only outlet to report in detail on this development.