Judge Throws Out Democrats's Redistricting Commission Lawsuit

Harford County Democrats were denied inclusion into the Decennial Redistricting Commission in a Circuit Court ruling Wednesday, The Baltimore Sun reported.

The ruling came more than Harford County Council , 5–2, to deny appointing Democrats to the commission.

Judge John F. Fader II, who made the ruling, stated that Democrats were asking him to "make new law," The Sun reported.

Although 41 percent of Harford County residents are registered Democrats—essentially a dead heat with county Republicans—their party received only 11.6 percent of council votes in the November election. The county charter states that a party must receive at least 15 percent of the votes to be eligible for inclusion on the redistricting commission.

Each party that meets the 15-percent threshold is allowed two members on the commission. The council must also appoint an at-large member. That position was filled with a Republican in February.

Democrats said that County Council President Billy Boniface, a Republican, should not have his votes count toward that percentage. He ran unopposed and received more than 75,000 votes. Council members Mary Ann Lisanti and Dion Guthrie are the only Democrats on the council.

Chairwoman of the Democratic Central Committee for Harford County, Wendy Sawyer, vowed to appeal.

“The failure of the Republican-led Harford County Council to form a Charter Review Commission to consider this issue has led us to this point,” Sawyer said in a statement. “We filed this suit because we believed the council used an error in the Charter to try to exclude Democratic influence in the redistricting process, which we believe violates both state law and the U.S. Constitution. The Judge’s decision today only supports that belief.”

"The Harford County Democratic Central Committee will be meeting with attorneys over the next few days to decide their next course of action," the statement also read.

"The judge's ruling is based on plain English in the charter," Scott DeLong, chairman of the county's Republican Central Committee, told The Sun.

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