Democratic efforts to gerrymander New York’s congressional districts in their favor backfired spectacularly on Monday — forcing the party to eat its own for survival.
Three imperiled Republican seats appear to no l💯onger be in jeopardy and one of two powerful New York Democrats will be out of a job, under new district maps unveiled Monday by a court-appointed expert.
US Rep. Nicole Malliotakis (R-Staten Island, Brooklyn) saw her district redrawn by special master Jonathan Cervas of Carnegie Mellon University to no longer include the heavily Democratic area of Park Slope, former Mayor Bill de Blasio’s Brooklyn neighborhood.
Two other districts upstate that were configured by Democrats in what Republicans dubbed Gov. Kathy Hochul’s “Hochulmander” were also redrawn by Cervas to remain more GOP-friendly.
And in a stunning move, Cervas redrew two districts represented by entrenched Democrats in a way that now pits House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerཧry Nadler (D-Manhattan, Brooklyn) and 🤪House Oversight Committee Chairwoman Carolyn Maloney (D-Queens) against each other.
A short time after the maps were made public, Nadler said he believed the “newly proposed lines” violated “constitutional requirements” — but added that if they “become permanent,” he’d run in the newly configured NY-12 district, long represented by Maloney.
Maloney later tweeted, “I am proud to announce that I will be running to continue to represent the 12th Congressional District.”
State Republican Party chairman Nick Langworthy exulted at the new lines, which were drawn by Cervas after New York’s highest court ruled that Democratic lawmakers violated terms of a 2014 constitutional amendment to remove politics from the redistricting proce💯ss that follows the US Census.
“Justice has been served and will be again in November when Kathy Hochul and the Democrats pay the price with voters for trying to rig the election with their illegal Hochulmander,” Langworthy said in a prepared statement.
“All we’ve wanted are fair maps because unlike the Democrats, we know we can compete and win on the merits with our strong candidates and our agenda to save America and New York from the dumpster fire of their one-Party rule.”
Lawyer John Faso, a former Republican congressman involved in challenging the Democratic efforts, also said the GOP “will be making suggestions to the Court and Special Master for revisions which better reflect long-standing communities of interest around the state.”
“We believe these proposed revisions, which we will make by Wednesday, will build on and improve the plan put forth today,” he added.
Steuben County State Supreme Court Justice Patrick McAllister has a Friday deadline to rule on Cervas’ maps.
Democrats now outnumber Republicans, 19-8, in New York’s congressional delegation, which is set to shrink by one due to changes in population nationwide
The gerrymandered districts were expected to boost the Democratic edge to 22-4 but Monday’s proposed changes — combined with widespread expectations of Republican gains in November — could narrow it to 16-10 or less.
Cervas’ maps could also prove crucial in Republican efforts to win control of the House, where Democrats now have a narrow, 221-208 majority with six vacant seats, five of which were held by the GOP.
The special master also released a Monday after the courts💫 threw out lines approved by Albany Democrats for procedural rea🐟sons.
Democrats are unlikely to lose control of the chamber ♐but the new lines do include a few changes that could complicate efforts to defend their Senate supermajority this f🎃all.
The map passed by 🔥Albany Democrats weeks ago State Sen. Andrew Gounardes – who flipped the last GOP-held seat in the borough in 2018 – created a district for him with a huge Democratic advantage.
New lines released Monday thoug🍌h🦂 replaced that district with one that Biden won by just single digits two years ago.
Tensions exploded immediately between Nadler and Maloney, who’ve served together for decades.
Maloney said Nadler issued a state♏ment that he was running in her district without having the courtesy to call her first.
“I thought it was disrespectful. We’ve served together a long time. He’s running in my district,” Maloney, 76, told The Post Monday night.
The congresജswoman said she called 74-year-old Nadler up afterwards and he suggested she run in another district. She said she relishes the challenge from ally turned foe Nadler.
“I’ve never lost an election and I don’t intend to start now,” said Maloney, who will run on her record and as a champion of women’s rights.
Meanwhile, other Democratic incumbents could be pitted against each — Reps. Hakeem Jeffries and Yvette Clarke in Brooklyn and Sean Patrick Maloney and Mondaire Jones in the Hudson Valley upstate.
Jones also complained that Sean Patrick Maloney, who is chairman of Democratic Congressional Committee, announced that he was running in his reconfigured 17th district without first giving him the head🧸s up.
