IMPORTANT: Re-apportionment Hearings (Sen. Grantham)

From Senator Kevin Grantham

Greetings all:

As you may well already know, the Reapportionment committee is traveling the state taking public input on their proposed maps for redrawing the State House and Senate district lines.

If you have not seen the maps they can be found at the following links:

House Maps: http://1.usa.gov/oTGLwE

Senate Maps: http://1.usa.gov/pOeQ73

I encourage you to review each of the maps and how it affects your county and the area as a whole. If you are not aware of the changes in Senate District 2 they are significant. They have created a monstrously sized district (currently renumbered to #31) that stretches from Mineral County (west of Alamosa) all the way to the Kansas line (including Kiowa, Prowers, and Baca counties). This district would be 26,887 square miles in size. For a little perspective, that is over a quarter of the land area of the entire state (104,100 sq. mi.) and is larger than 10 US States.

It also removes Fremont County (where I live) and adds in the six counties of the San Luis Valley as well as Prowers and Kiowa on the eastern end. The removal of Fremont and the addition of the San Luis Valley creates a dramatic shift in voter registration numbers. As it sits now it is a registration advantage for Republicans at 40.11% to 35.44%. This shifts it to a 5 point advantage to the Democrats (41.09% D to 36.72% R). A 10 point swing!

The other main issue is the violence that it does to our communities of interest. Fremont County has a common bond with the Lower Ark area because of its ties with the Ag community, farming, ranching, water, etc., as well as other economic drivers such as Corrections. The replacing of Fremont with the San Luis Valley does not improve the communities of interest aspect of the maps but does significant violence to it. Can they actually keep a straight face and say that Mineral and Rio Grande counties have a stronger community of interest with the Lower Ark than Fremont? Or is this simply a ploy to turn over a current Republican seat to a Democrat?

If you have the same or similar concerns with these maps please find the time to come testify at one of the following meetings. Share this information with other concerned citizens in your county so that they can make their voice heard.

Also, here is an OpEd from the Pueblo Chieftain this morning (8/17) regarding this issue:

http://www.chieftain.com/opinion/editorials/don-t-fix-it/article_a9d3bf6e-c872-11e0-97c7-001cc4c002e0.html#user-comment-area

Thank you all and I look forward to seeing you at the meetings.

Kevin Grantham

Senator, Colorado District 2
kevin.grantham.senate@state.co.us