Western Mass. is at risk to lose a Congressional seat.
Massachusetts' Congressional districts, last updated in 2008. A Legislative panel will oversee the redistricting of the Commonwealth, which is losing one Congressional seat. See the full version »The Joint Committee on Redistricting will hold its first public hearing this Wednesday on the process of redrawing Congressional districts for the Commonwealth, which is slated to lose a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives based on results of the 2010 census.
The hearing will be held at 1 p.m. in the Gardner Auditorium at the State House in Boston, according to the State House News Service.
The committee will unveil its new website and announce the dates and locations of more public hearings to be held around the state. The committee has been emphasizing its efforts toward transparency after Democratic members of the Legislature roundly rejected measures in the House and Senate to appoint an independent panel — rather than state legislators themselves — to oversee redistricting.
State Republicans criticized the rejection, largely along party lines, citing a January poll that found 62 percent of state residents supported such a measure.
Redistricting could have a major impact in Western Massachusetts, which currently has two U.S. representatives, Democrats Richard Neal of Springfield and John Olver of Amherst. Both made unusually early announcements that they intended to run for re-election, and some have suggested that the less populous western half of the state could see its districts merged.
Western Mass. has representation on the panel, though: the committee's Senate chair is Stanley C. Rosenberg, D-Amherst and its House vice chair is Cheryl A. Coakley-Rivera, D-Springfield. Reps. Stephen Kulik, D-Worthington, and Christopher N. Speranzo, D-Pittsfield, are also members.
Redistricting could also be impacted by who decides to run against U.S. Sen. Scott Brown, a Republican. The Washington Post's Aaron Blake wrote back in December about what Brown's election to the U.S. Senate has to do with redistricting:
Had Brown not shocked the world by winning a special election in January, there wouldn't be an opportunity for a Democratic member of Congress to challenge him. And without the opportunity for a promotion, the only way to avoid two members running against each other would have been if one retired.
As it stands now, it appears likely that at least one member of the delegation will run against Brown. Failing that, the members could hope one of two septuagenarian members retires. Read more »
The two "septuagenarian members" — Barney Frank, 71, and John Olver, 75 — have both said they intend to run for reelection. The Post recently named Reps. Stephen Lynch and Michael Capuano as possible challengers to Brown, who continues to have strong approval ratings among state voters, according to a recent poll from the Western New England College polling center.