Republicans have a plan for our maps after Election Day. Here's what it is, and how your vote can stop it.

Georgia Republicans plan to redraw our political maps right after the November election, in a lame-duck session while Governor Kemp is still in office to sign them. They backed off in June because redrawing was politically risky right before an election, not for the reasons they gave. The best way to fight back is to elect Keisha Lance Bottoms governor –her veto would give us the leverage to force fair maps, and to flip seats in the legislature.

In this Edition of the Draper Paper

• Their plan: a lame-duck map grab

• Why the governor's veto is our best leverage

• Watch and share: my new video

• You're invited! Support Tanya Miller for Attorney General

Their plan: a lame-duck map grab

It's an open secret that Republicans plan to call a special session after the midterms to draw new electoral maps for Congress, and the Georgia State House and Senate. They laughed about it during the special session in June, after their plans to redraw the maps then were put on hold by Republican party leaders.

Let's back up. On April 29, the Supreme Court issued its decision in Louisiana v. Callais, gutting what was left of the Voting Rights Act. That law was the guardrail stopping Georgia Republicans from drawing rigged maps that silence minority voters. Overnight, the Voting Rights Act was gone.

Within weeks of the Callais decision, Governor Kemp called a special session and put redistricting on the agenda. He asked lawmakers to redraw Georgia's congressional maps and their own legislative districts and to pass those maps right away.(AP via PBS).

Then, on June 17, hours before the special session began, House Speaker Jon Burns stood before a packed Capitol atrium and announced that the House would not take up redistricting during that special session.

Speaker Jon Burns’ broken promise

Although Republican leaders claimed they delayed redrawing political boundaries to allow for public input and court reviews, that excuse was just a political trick to avoid voter backlash before the midterm election. Instead of holding hearings, they are running out the clock to push through partisan maps in a “surprise” post-election session.

Standing before a large crowd of angry Georgians, Speaker Burns laid out his reasons for not redrawing the maps in June (watch the press conference). He said when the House learned redistricting was one of the governor’s priorities for the June special session, "we knew it was not the right path forward for our state at this time." Notice those last three words. Not never. Just not now.

He said redistricting should be done "the Georgia way — responsibly, transparently, and with ample opportunity for public input." He promised "joint reapportionment meetings to hear from voters in every corner of the state," in "a fair and bipartisan environment." He also stated that the state’s decision to drop redistricting plans was driven by a commitment to a "thoughtful, fact-driven process" rather than "partisan gain.” 

And he pointed to the courts. With several cases pending over Georgia's maps, he said Republicans "look forward to receiving additional judicial opinions to assist in our future map drawing efforts." He made this point in his letter to Governor Kemp that morning.

Senate President Pro Tem Larry Walker III, standing beside him, was even more candid. He said the Callais decision "left no doubt that we would need to draw new maps. The question was when." He said the Senate wanted "to allow the judicial process to further develop in other states" while "receiving additional public input before considering any changes to our maps." 

But those weren't the Republicans' real reasons for delaying redistricting. Before the special session, Republicans polled redistricting, and it polled poorly. Behind closed doors, Republican lawmakers worried that a redraw diminishing Georgians' ability to elect the politicians of their choosing would spark a backlash, leading to even bigger Democratic wins in the midterms. With their own members on the ballot in November, House and Senate Republican leaders rejected their own governor's call.

It wasn't a moral decision. It was a political one.

How do we know these reasons were a pretext? Compare each one to what has happened since.

• "Ample opportunity for public input." Not one of the promised joint reapportionment meetings has been held. Not in a single corner of the state. In September, the Speaker's office told the AJC that none were even scheduled. And Walker, who promised "additional public input" in June, told the AJC he had not committed to the joint hearings at all.

• "Additional judicial opinions." The federal district court is now in the process of reviewing Georgia's maps, but no decision has been issued yet. If Republicans redraw the maps in a lame-duck session before those opinions come down, the pending litigation excuse was never real.

• "Not to rush through it." A lame-duck session called weeks after Election Day, with no hearings held and the courts still deciding, is the very definition of rushing it.

• "Not the right path forward … at this time." Republicans never said they wouldn't redraw. Walker said it himself: "The question was when." The answer: after the voters are done voting in the midterms.

If Republicans truly cared about transparency and public input, they had all summer and fall to hold hearings. Instead, they are running out the clock until a lame-duck session, when voters will have no chance to weigh in and no election left to hold them accountable. So much for "not partisan gain."

As I told the AJC last month: "If Keisha Lance Bottoms wins, they're going to push this through, and I think any promises of halting for pending litigation or transparency will be out the window."

What Happens Next

Instead of facing voters before the midterms, Republicans plan to rush a partisan redistricting map through a lame-duck session later this year while Governor Kemp is still in office to sign it, locking in legislative republican majorities for a generation before a new governor can take office.

When I wrote to you in April, I laid out two paths Republicans could take. One of those paths was to redraw the maps in a special session this year, too late to affect the midterms, but early enough to avoid a veto from a Democratic governor or a fight with a Democratic House or Senate. That is exactly the path they've chosen.

Here's how it will work. Wait until the votes are counted in November. If Democrats make significant gains in the State Legislature or win the Governor and other statewide races, call legislators back to the Capitol in a lame-duck session, in November or December, and draw the rigged maps they refused to draw in June while Governor Kemp is still in office to sign them. 

Politically, Georgia is a 50/50 state. We've proven that in election after election. But with rigged maps, Georgia Republicans could lock in their majorities for a generation, no matter how Georgians vote.

And make no mistake about what that would mean: The same one-party rule that has controlled our state for more than two decades, without real checks and balances, that has given us sky-high costs and unchecked data centers popping up in our backyards while our power bills keep going up will remain in power. Rigged maps would make that the permanent state of affairs, no matter how you vote.

Why the governor's veto is our best leverage

If you elect Keisha Lance Bottoms as governor, every single thing Republicans want for the next four years has to get past her veto. Their budget priorities. Their tax bills. Their pet projects. All of it.

So if Kemp signs the maps before she takes office, why does it matter who wins the governor's race? Because a map isn't permanent. The legislature can redraw maps any year it chooses, and a Democratic governor can make sure it chooses to.

And Georgia's governor holds more cards than most. The governor sets the revenue estimate that caps the entire state budget and can strike individual spending items with a line-item veto. Republicans do not have the two-thirds majorities in both chambers they would need to override her.

That's leverage. And Governor Bottoms can use it to force Republicans back to the table on fair maps. Without a Democratic governor, those rigged maps stand for a generation. With her as governor, we have a fighting chance.

The same goes for the legislature. Flipping the Georgia House or Senate would give us a second check on one-party rule and a seat at the table when maps are drawn. That's why it matters that you vote all the way down your ballot.

Watch and share: my new video

I made a short video explaining all of this in about a minute. Almost nobody is talking about this issue, and that's exactly what Republicans are counting on. Please watch it, share it with every Georgian you know, and follow me on Instagram for more.

Watch the video on Instagram, the most important reason to vote for Keisha Lance Bottoms for governor:

Key Voting Info and Canvassing Opportunities

Voting Information

• Vote early, in person. Early voting runs Tuesday, October 13 through Friday, October 30. You can vote at any early voting site in your county. Use my Early Voting tool to find your early voting location in Metro Atlanta.

• Vote absentee if you need to. The deadline to request an absentee ballot is October 23.

• Check your registration and find your polling place at the Georgia My Voter Page.

• Vote all the way down the ballot on or before Election Day, Tuesday, November 3.

• Questions? Call the voter protection hotline at 888-730-5816.

Other Opportunities and Events

• Tuesday, Oct 13th, 5:30pm to 7pm

  Join Democratic Nominee for HD-90 Bentley Hudgins, Sen. Josh McLaurin, and the Hon. Stacey Abrams for an Early Vote Rally in South DeKalb
  

• Canvass with Rep. Draper

  Check out my Canvassing Resource Page at sairadraper.com/canvass for the latest canvassing opportunities!

You're invited! Support Tanya Miller for Attorney General

I’m so excited to support Rep. Tanya Miller for Attorney General. This is a critical role, especially this year, and  I know Tanya will use the office to protect our right to vote, as well as so many other positive things. 

If you haven’t already, check out her newest ad here:

If you are wondering “how can I help,” let this be your sign! You can contribute to Tanya’s campaign here, or join me at this l event for her in Druid Hills on October 20. We would love for you to join us! 

Use this link to RSVP. Plus, your donation to this link will be matched by the Democratic Attorney Generals Association– that’s double the donation to Tanya’s campaign.

Added bonus: are you a Braves fan? The Druid Hills home where the event is located has one of the most impressive collections of Braves memorabilia in the country!

Yours in service,