New Senate Map Settles Lawsuit Over Redistricting

New Senate map settles lawsuit over redistricting The departures of Senators John A. Celona and William V. Irons allow for a new district that reunites parts of South Providence. 01:00 AM EDT on Saturday, May 22, 2004 BY EDWARD FITZPATRICK Journal Staff Writer

PROVIDENCE -- Senate leaders announced the settlement of a two-year-old redistricting lawsuit yesterday, saying they could have won the legal battle but chose to redraw the Senate map to bolster minority voting power. The lawsuit claims the current Senate map violates the Voting Rights Act by dividing the black community on Providence's South Side into two districts. The new map, if approved by the General Assembly and governor, would end that divide while changing 12 of the 38 Senate districts. That would leave 10 incumbents facing new territory in an election year while creating two new districts with no incumbents. Senate President Joseph A. Montalbano said he is confident the Senate would have prevailed in federal court. But, he said, "We were presented with a rare opportunity when two districts abutting the city of Providence became unexpectedly open. That opportunity allows us to redraw the district lines to strengthen both the African-American and the Hispanic voting power in Providence." That opportunity arose when former Senate President William V. Irons, D-East Providence, and Sen. John A. Celona, D-North Providence, resigned amid investigations into their financial ties to CVS and Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Rhode Island. Their departures resulted in two vacant Senate seats, giving mapmakers the wiggle room to create a new Providence district that reunites parts of South Providence while reaching north to the Mount Hope neighborhoods. The Senate map that triggered the lawsuit had pitted the Senate's first and only black member, Charles D. Walton, against Juan M. Pichardo, who defeated Walton in 2002 to become the Senate's first and only Hispanic member. The new map puts Pichardo and Walton in different districts. Walton is in the district reaching from South Providence to Mount Hope, which is 25 percent black and contains no incumbent. Pichardo is in an Elmwood district that is 50 percent Hispanic and contains no other incumbent. Senate leaders believe the new map will increase the chance of electing more than one minority senator this year.

Montalbano, who was vice chairman of the redistricting commission, said no redistricting could have been more difficult than the one that took effect in 2002, which reflected a voter-mandated downsizing of the Assembly. The Senate shrunk from 50 to 38 members. Given that "daunting task," Montalbano said, the mapmaking was fair and open. And, he said, "I want to make it very clear the Senate is not admitting fault." But, Montalbano said, "They do refer to me as someone who knows how to build a consensus." And, he said, "We were sensitive to the needs of the minority community." A SECONDARY FACTOR in the settlement, Montalbano said later, was that ending the legal battle could save the state up to $1 million in legal bills. The state has already spent more than $1.1 million defending against three redistricting suits. Senate Majority Leader M. Teresa Paiva Weed, D-Newport, said, "I'm so proud today to be a part of this proposed settlement agreement and of the 10 senators who put the principle of inclusiveness ahead of themselves." She said the plan is perhaps most difficult for Pichardo "because he's brand new, and he fought so hard for four years to get here." Indeed, the new map gives Pichardo just 42 percent of his old district. "It's an ultimate sacrifice from my end," Pichardo said. So why did he agree to the plan? "It's the principle of more minority representation in the Senate," he said. The new map also changes Montalbano's district. While he'd retain 80 percent of his old district, Montalbano lives in North Providence, and the new map would give him a larger portion of Lincoln. "I hear now there's going to be real Republicans in my district," Montalbano said, adding that former Republican Gov. Lincoln C. Almond would be in his district. "So we are all personally affected, but we are all personally very committed to having this become a reality because of the importance of the issue." The state's redistricting consultant, Kimball W. Brace, said, "Usually in these situations, cases do tend to go to trial, so it is unusual to see this kind of settlement, particularly when one side felt pretty confident they were going to win at trial." The key, he said, was having two Senate seats open up. Brace said he began "playing around with different possibilities" to reconfigure the map over the past two or three months. The plaintiffs presented a map that created a Providence district with a stronger black population, but that plan included "much more major change" for other districts. So he said he came up with a map that achieved the same goal "without disrupting people as much." AMONG THE SENATORS whose districts were redrawn, Sen. Daniel J. Issa, D-Central Falls, would be disrupted the least, maintaining 93 percent of his old district, while Sen. Frank A.

Ciccone III, D-Providence, would be disrupted the most, keeping just 34 percent of his current district. All 10 incumbents affected by the new map are Democrats, and Montalbano said he thinks all 12 districts will be won by Democrats. "The governor is not getting one of these seats, if I do my job," Montalbano said, referring to Republican Governor Carcieri. The suit was filed on May 2, 2002, in U.S. District Court on behalf of seven plaintiffs: former state Rep. Harold M. Metts, Bryan Evans, Stephanie Cruz, Jean Wiggins, the NAACP Providence branch, the Urban League of Rhode Island and the Black Political Action Committee. Metts, the lead plaintiff, said, "We believe the plan the Senate is now proposing, by uniting upper and lower South Providence in one Senate district, is fair to black voters. The plan is also fair to Latino voters because it allows them to elect their candidate of their choice to the Senate in a separate district." Tomas Alberto Avila, president of the Rhode Island Latino Political Action Committee, said, "To our African-American brothers and sisters, I want to tell you that we are here to help you and work with you." He noted minorities make up 55 percent of Providence's population, saying, "Together we can achieve greater political power and truly be a force." Clifford R. Montiero, president of the NAACP Providence branch, said, "This is a historical day." He said the plaintiffs also believed they would prevail in court. "So there was no need for a settlement," he said. "But in the interest of inclusion and justice, this settlement came about. Now we need it to pass through the legislature and be signed by the governor."