Infighting continues among county Democrats over redistricting

ROCHESTER, N.Y. (WHEC) — The infighting continues among county Democrats.

Members of the Democratic caucus today say the proposed redistricting map created by Legislator Rachel Barnhart actually walks back her promise of protecting the interest of minority voters.

They say it unfairly packs minorities—specifically black voters—into districts that already have a long history of electing black and Latino officials.

“In fact, the Barnhart GOP map changes LV21, Legislator Barnhart’s district, from a majority-minority district that would be over 60-percent white, and is the only district with the largest demographic change when comparing maps,” said Yversha roman, County Legislator, 26th district.

Rachel Barnhart, who worked on the so-called “crescent” map with legislature President Sabrina Lamar, released a statement in response, saying in part—”It’s devastating to see fellow democrats—who initially agreed to create five black districts—engage in anti-black racism in an effort to thwart this historic opportunity.”

Lamar also issued a statement saying in part, “in Monroe County, five black-majority districts are proportional to the black population, historic for our community, and are required by the voting rights act. This historic map was created and agreed to by democrats until they panicked at the thought of black voting districts.”