Washington, D.C. – The National Democratic Redistricting Committee (NDRC) has filed a motion to intervene to protect the court-drawn congressional map in Pennsylvania. The filing was made in the Middle District of Pennsylvania in response to a Republican lawsuit that seeks to invalidate a congressional map drawn by the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania after the court found the previous map violated the state Constitution.

“This is a shameless attempt by Republicans to defend an unjust status quo that keeps themselves in power but deprives voters from having a meaningful choice in congressional elections,” said Eric H. Holder, Jr., Chairman of NDRC and 82nd Attorney General of the United States. “As the court found, Republican gerrymandering undermines our democratic principles by diluting the voting power of citizens. By fighting against a fair map drawn by an independent court, Republicans have shown they are afraid of the very voters they claim they want to represent.”

You can read the motion to intervene here and the memo in support of the motion to intervene here.

The NDRC will also be filing an opposition to the request for a temporary restraining order and a motion to dismiss the case.

The NDRC recently announced Pennsylvania is on its Electoral Target list for 2018. The targets include the states that were the most badly gerrymandered by Republicans in 2011 as well as states where Democrats have an opportunity to protect against Republican gerrymandering.

The NDRC is the first-ever strategic hub for a comprehensive redistricting strategy that includes winning targeted elections, reforming the system, advancing legal action and building the infrastructure needed to achieve a fairer redistricting process.
Our goal is to restore fairness to our democracy by undoing the Republican gerrymandering plaguing our country and creating fair congressional and legislative maps that reflect the will of the voters.