Georgia redistricting battles continue
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Illustration: Brendan Lynch/Axios
A trend has grown at the state Capitol: Republicans are continuing to overrule local redistricting maps drawn by a handful of Democratic-led counties.
What's happening: Gwinnett, Cobb and Richmond all have majority Democratic representation at the state Capitol and in their local governments.
- But GOP state lawmakers are bypassing the traditional, locally led redistricting process to enact Republican-drawn county commission and school board district maps.
Catch up quick: We outlined the beginnings of this phenomenon last week which began with Gwinnett and quickly emerged in Cobb: two Republican strongholds that have recently flipped Democratic. Richmond County also joined the fray.
State of play: All votes have happened along party lines and against the will of the county commissions, which normally manage their own local redistricting.
- Gwinnett County's Republican-backed county commission map passed the Senate on Thursday. It now heads to the governor for a signature.
- Cobb County's Republican-backed county commission and school district maps passed a House committee Wednesday and await a full House vote.
- Augusta-Richmond County's GOP-backed county commission and school district maps were introduced last week, passed the Senate on Thursday and are headed to the House.
What they're saying: At every turn, Democrats have spoken out to little avail. On the Senate floor Thursday, Gwinnett Democratic state Sen. Michelle Au called the Republican maps a "stunning abrogation of the custom of majority rule in the democratic process."
- In a House committee meeting Wednesday, Cobb Democratic Rep. David Wilkerson said he was "disgusted" by the process. Fellow Cobb Democrat Rep. Teri Anulewicz called it "opaque obfuscation."
- Democratic state Sen. Jen Jordan told her colleagues: "We are tearing this body apart … In the name of what? Being able to take local decisions out of the hands of duly elected officials?"
Our thought bubble: Republicans have the votes to pass these bills. The battles seem inevitably headed for court.