New York redistricting is in the middle of a major overhaul. After two court-ordered map redraws this decade, Democratic leaders in Albany have advanced a constitutional amendment that would let the legislature redraw congressional districts before the next census, strip out the current ban on partisan gerrymandering, and limit judges’ ability to step in. The measure has cleared its first legislative hurdle, must pass again in 2027, and would then go to voters in a November 2027 referendum. If approved, new maps could be in place for the 2028 elections.
Where the Congressional Map Stands Now
The congressional lines used in 2024 were drawn by the state legislature after it rejected the Independent Redistricting Commission’s proposal in February 2024. Governor Kathy Hochul signed the plan on February 28, 2024, using a “message of necessity” to skip standard waiting periods.1City & State NY. NY Democrats Pass Modestly Altered Congressional Maps Republican leaders said they would not challenge the new lines.
One district did draw a lawsuit. In October 2025, voters sued over the 11th Congressional District, covering Staten Island and part of Brooklyn, arguing its boundaries diluted Black and Latino voting power in violation of a 2014 state constitutional provision. On January 21, 2026, Justice Jeffrey Pearlman of the New York County Supreme Court agreed and ordered the commission to draw a remedial “crossover” district.2Loyola Law School. Williams v N.Y. State Bd. of Elections
Representative Nicole Malliotakis and state Republican officials appealed. After a New York intermediate appellate court declined to pause the ruling, they went to the U.S. Supreme Court, which granted a stay on March 2, 2026 in an unsigned order. Justice Samuel Alito concurred, calling the trial court’s order “unadorned racial discrimination.” Justices Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan, and Ketanji Brown Jackson dissented.3SCOTUSblog. Supreme Court Grants Republicans’ Request to Pause Order to Redraw New York Congressional Map4CNN. Supreme Court Blocks New York Congressional District Redrawing The underlying state case was later dismissed by agreement of the parties.5State Court Report. Williams v Board of Elections of the State of New York The 2024 lines will be used in 2026.
What the 2026 Amendment Would Change
On June 1, 2026, Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins and Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie introduced a constitutional amendment, S.10637-A and A.11553-A, that rewrites how New York draws congressional districts.6CityLand. NY Elections, Census, and Redistricting Update Two days later, both chambers gave it preliminary approval: 38–22 in the Senate and 91–47 in the Assembly.7Politico. New York Democrats Give Preliminary Approval to Redistricting Amendment
The amendment does four main things:
- Authorizes the legislature to redraw congressional districts before the next census, with new maps taking effect for the 2028 elections.
- Removes existing constitutional language that prohibits drawing maps to favor political parties or incumbents.
- Strips out prior requirements around compactness and the multi-tier voting thresholds that applied to commission-approved plans.
- Limits judicial intervention, allowing a court to order new maps only if the legislature has been given a “full and reasonable opportunity” to fix a constitutional violation and has failed to do so.8New York State Assembly. A11553-A Legislative Text
The Independent Redistricting Commission would remain in place but with reduced authority. If the commission deadlocks or a court invalidates a map, the legislature would draw the replacement directly, rather than the process defaulting to a court-appointed special master as it did in 2022.9Spectrum News. NY First Passage Redistricting Amendment
Redistricting analysts project Democrats could gain up to four congressional seats in 2028 if the amendment takes effect. Jeff Wice identified likely pickup opportunities on Long Island, in New York City, and in the lower Hudson Valley. Professor Grant Reeher noted possible additional gains upstate, though he tied the ultimate count to national conditions: “If November 2026 is a good year for Democrats and they put up a good presidential candidate in 2028, that will make a big difference.”10Spectrum News. New York’s Proposed Redistricting Amendment
How and When It Would Become Law
Because it is a constitutional amendment, the measure must pass the legislature in two separately elected sessions. The 2026 vote is done. It must clear a second vote in 2027, then go before voters in a November 2027 statewide referendum. If approved, it takes effect the following January 1, in time for the 2028 redistricting cycle.11Associated Press. New York Democrats Take First Steps Toward an Aggressive 2028 Redistricting Plan
Why Democrats Are Moving Now
Starting in 2025, states began redrawing congressional maps outside the usual once-a-decade cycle. Texas Governor Greg Abbott called a special session in August 2025 aimed at adding five Republican seats. North Carolina, Ohio, and Missouri enacted new maps in the fall of 2025, and Florida’s governor called a special redistricting session in April 2026.12National Conference of State Legislatures. Changing the Maps: Tracking Mid-Decade Redistricting Democrats responded where they could: California adopted new maps via ballot measure in November 2025, and Virginia’s new lines were projected to flip four House seats toward Democrats.13Cook Political Report. 2025-26 Mid-Decade Redistricting Map
New York’s constitution blocked that kind of response. Mid-decade redistricting was prohibited, and any aggressively partisan map would run into the state’s anti-gerrymandering provisions. Senate Deputy Majority Leader Mike Gianaris argued during the June 3 floor debate that “we are playing a game that we’re not playing alone. So if the other participants in this process are playing by a different set of rules, to not be able to respond in kind would be irresponsible.”7Politico. New York Democrats Give Preliminary Approval to Redistricting Amendment House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries called New York’s amendment part of a “forceful, ongoing and multi-state response” to Republican redistricting nationally.14The Hill. New York Democrats Redistricting Measure
Republicans have called the amendment a partisan power grab. Assembly Minority Leader Ed Ra called it “heavy-handed” and said Republicans plan to “defeat it at the ballot box.”10Spectrum News. New York’s Proposed Redistricting Amendment
How the State Got Here
In 2014, New York voters approved a constitutional amendment creating the Independent Redistricting Commission, a ten-member advisory body whose maps require legislative approval.15New York Independent Redistricting Commission. About the Commission The Brennan Center later identified the core design flaw: unlike commissions in California and Michigan, New York’s commission never had final authority over maps, and if the legislature rejected two proposals it could draw its own.16Brennan Center for Justice. What Went Wrong With New York’s Redistricting
That is what played out in the 2020 cycle. The commission deadlocked and submitted competing proposals in January 2022. The legislature rejected both and passed its own maps that February.17Loyola Law School. New York Redistricting18League of Women Voters. Harkenrider v Hochul19Justia. Matter of Harkenrider v Hochul Judge Patrick McAllister appointed Jonathan Cervas as a neutral special master to draw replacements. The resulting map contained a substantial number of competitive seats, forced incumbent-versus-incumbent primaries (including Representatives Jerrold Nadler and Carolyn Maloney), and eliminated the double-digit Democratic advantage the legislature’s version had built in.20The New York Times. Jonathan Cervas Redistricting Maps NY21City & State NY. Draft House Maps Released by Special Master
In December 2023, the Court of Appeals ordered the commission to draw fresh congressional maps for 2024, ruling 4–3 that courts lacked “blanket authority to create decade-long redistricting plans.”22City & State NY. Court of Appeals Orders New Round of Redistricting The commission submitted a plan in February 2024; the legislature rejected it and passed its own two days later. That is the map now in force.
The Referendum Fight to Come
Democrats have reason to worry about the 2027 ballot vote. In November 2021, voters rejected Proposal 1, a set of changes to the redistricting commission, with 51 percent voting no.23New York Magazine. Ballot Proposals on Redistricting, Voting Fail in New York The state Conservative Party spent roughly $3 million on ads calling the measures “tantamount to corruption,” and the Republican Party ran a 40-county opposition tour, while Democrats “spent and did little” to promote the proposals. The measures carried in most of New York City and failed everywhere else.24The New York Times. NY Ballot Measures
Against that backdrop, Democrats are pursuing a separate bill to move control of referendum ballot language from the four-member, bipartisan-split Board of Elections to the legislature. Under current law, the attorney general recommends wording, but the Board has final say. Gianaris argued Republicans should not have “50 percent of the say in what legislative proposals look like on the ballot.” State Senator Jack Martins countered that the legislature should not “play politics with our state constitution,” and Republican Board of Elections co-chair Peter Kosinski said voters should see “fair language — not just partisan language.”25Politico. Democrats Seek More Control Over Referenda in New York
How the question is worded on the 2027 ballot may end up mattering as much as the vote itself.