!!!Senate committee endorses new Maryland legislative map

Legislators in a key Senate committee endorsed on Tuesday a new map for their own districts for the next election, choosing a map touted by Democratic leaders and rejecting one backed by Republican Gov. Larry Hogan.

Approval went along party lines with 11 Democrats in favor and four Republicans opposed. The proposed map now goes to the full Senate for approval, which is likely by the end of the week, The Baltimore Sun reported.

The map takes into account demographic shifts in the state’s population recorded in the last census. While Maryland grew to nearly 6.2 million residents, some areas saw larger gains while others lost residents, requiring adjustments to the districts for the 47 state senators and 141 delegates.

Each district has one senator and three delegates, with some delegates elected at-large and others elected in single-member or two-member subdistricts.

Other changes to district boundaries were aimed at grouping "communities of interest” together, said Karl Aro, a retired top adviser to state lawmakers who led a commission that drew the new map.

Aro said the work was challenging, given Maryland’s unique geographic shape and state constitutional requirements that districts be compact and contiguous.

The map has been criticized by Republicans as well as Fair Maps Maryland, a group aligned with Hogan. The governor submitted written testimony urging lawmakers to support the map drawn by the commission he appointed, and not the one drawn by their panel.

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Hogan warned that if the legislature’s map is adopted, it likely faces legal challenges. Already, a map with new boundaries for congressional districts that was adopted by the General Assembly last month is the subject of two lawsuits.

Local elections officials raised concerns that they face a significant amount of work in a short period of time to adjust polling locations, arrange staff and equipment, and notify voters of their new districts and where they should vote.