What the New Redistricting Map Means for Your Neighborhood

The state’s independent redistricting commission released its final map on Monday, redrawing three suburban congressional districts and splitting fewer counties than the map it replaces. For most residents, nothing changes. But roughly 410,000 residents will be in a different district in the next election, and many of them live in the fast-growing suburbs where new subdivisions, schools and shopping centers have reshaped the landscape over the past decade.

We went through the new map street by street to see what changed, who moved and what it means for voters. Here is what you need to know, whether your district shifted or stayed exactly the same.

Why the lines were redrawn

Congressional districts must have nearly equal populations, so they are redrawn after each census to reflect where people have moved. But this map was also the result of a court order. Last year, a state court ruled that parts of the previous map did not follow the state constitution’s requirements to keep counties and communities together where possible, and it directed the commission to produce a new version.

The commission is made up of nine members: three registered with each major party and three not affiliated with either. Its rules require approval from at least one member of each group before a final map can be adopted. The new map passed on a 7-2 vote.

The biggest changes

The 4th District shifts north to take in the fast-growing towns along the interstate. The 6th loses its eastern rural counties and becomes more compact. The 7th picks up two university neighborhoods.

The 4th District

Under the old map, the 4th wrapped around the southern edge of the metro area and included several older suburbs. Under the new map, it stretches north along the interstate corridor to include towns that have grown rapidly as new housing developments, warehouses and office parks have opened. The district gives up about 140,000 residents in its southern neighborhoods to the neighboring 5th District, which is otherwise unchanged.

The 6th District

The 6th once ran from the eastern suburbs out into four rural counties, an arrangement critics said combined communities with very different needs. The new 6th is centered on the eastern suburbs and two smaller cities nearby. Its rural counties move to the 8th District, which already covered most of the state’s eastern farmland.

The 7th District

The 7th gains two neighborhoods near the state university that were previously split between two districts. Students, faculty and longtime residents had argued at public hearings that the campus area should be kept whole. The commission agreed, moving about 60,000 people into the 7th.

How to find your district

The commission has posted an interactive map on its website where residents can type in their address and see both their old and new districts. County election offices will also mail updated voter cards to every affected household before the next primary.

If you want to check where you stand, here is a simple process:

1. Look up your address on the commission’s online map.
2. Compare your old and new district numbers.
3. Confirm your voter registration is current with the county election office.
4. Watch for your new voter card in the mail over the coming months.
5. Check your polling place before Election Day, since some precincts may change too.

Election officials said the new districts apply only to congressional races. State legislative districts, which were redrawn separately two years ago, are not affected.

Questions voters are asking

Since the map was released, county election offices said they have received a steady stream of calls. The most common questions are whether voters need to re-register (they do not, unless they have moved), whether their state legislative districts changed (they did not) and whether they can still contact their current member of Congress for help with federal agencies (they can, until the new term begins).

Election officials also reminded voters that their precinct number and polling place may change even if their congressional district stays the same, because some precinct boundaries were adjusted to match the new lines. They recommend checking polling place information a few weeks before every election, not just this one.

Residents who believe their address was assigned to the wrong district on the online map can report it to the commission through a form on its website. Staff said a small number of addresses in new subdivisions were still being verified.

A process in public

Commission chair Peter Allen said the panel held 31 public hearings and received more than 9,000 written comments. Hearings were held in every region of the state, including evening sessions in libraries, community colleges and school gyms. Many were also streamed online, and residents could submit their own proposed maps using free mapping software the commission provided.

We drew the lines in public, on a screen, with everyone watching. That was the point.

Peter Allen, Redistricting Commission

Allen said the most common requests from residents fell into a few clear themes:

• Keep towns and school districts in a single congressional district
• Avoid splitting counties unless necessary to balance population
• Group suburbs with similar transportation and housing concerns
• Keep the university neighborhoods together
• Make district shapes compact and easy to understand

The final map splits five counties, compared with nine under the previous map. Commission staff said every split was required to keep district populations within the legal limits.

Reaction and what comes next

Reaction to the map was mixed, as it usually is. Leaders of both major parties issued statements praising some changes and criticizing others. A coalition of civic groups that had pushed for independent redistricting called the process the most open in the state’s history.

Not everyone was satisfied. Residents in one rural county that moved from the 6th to the 8th District said they had built relationships with their current representative’s office and worried about starting over. Several mayors in the interstate corridor, on the other hand, welcomed being placed in a single district for the first time.

For years, our town was split down Main Street. Now we have one member of Congress, and they’ll actually know who we are.

Mayor Theresa Gaines, a town in the new 4th District

Legal challenges remain possible. Under state law, residents have 45 days to file objections with the state Supreme Court. Lawyers for at least one group have said they are reviewing the map, though none has filed so far. If no challenge succeeds, the new districts will be in place for the next congressional primary and general election.

Key takeaway: About 410,000 residents will be in a new congressional district, mostly in the suburbs. Check your address on the commission’s map and confirm your voter registration before the next primary.

What it means for you

For voters whose districts changed, the most practical effect is simple: a different name may appear on the ballot. You may also have a different representative’s office to contact with questions about federal programs, passports or veterans’ benefits. Current members of Congress will continue to represent their old districts until the next term begins.

For everyone else, the new map is worth a look anyway. District lines shape which issues get attention and which communities are grouped together. This year, for the first time, residents had a real say in where those lines were drawn. Allen said he hopes they will keep paying attention. “The map is finished,” he said. “The conversation about how we’re represented shouldn’t be.”