1st Congressional District Boundaries Are Finally Set; Hahn Drops Out Of Race, Endorses Fleming

The third time is apparently the charm.

The 1st Congressional District map, which has seen its shape pushed and pulled in different directions three times in as many months, has finally been set.

The new map is expected to be a toss-up between Democrats and Republicans, based on voting in the 2020 presidential election.

That’s a far cry from the original map, which had favored Democrats by 11 percentage points, based on 2020 voting, and it reflects an adjustment back toward the middle after a draft map, produced by court-appointed special master Jonathan Cervas that favored Republicans, was revised to reflect a more balanced electorate after a public comment period.

The race is expected to come down to a contest between Suffolk County Legislator Bridget Fleming of Noyac and Nick LaLota, a former Suffolk County Board of Elections commissioner, who is currently the general counsel of the county legislature.

Fleming’s two chief rivals, County Legislator Kara Hahn and Jackie Gordon, pulled out of the race this week, and LaLota has been endorsed by the Suffolk County Republican Committee.

In the meantime, the League of Women Voters of New York has filed a lawsuit seeking to have the State Assembly primaries postponed from June 28 to August 23 to align them with the congressional and state Senate primaries, which were postponed after state courts ordered both to be redrawn. The Assembly districts were not challenged, and the primaries were not changed.

“It’s safe to say the district is more likely to elect a Republican,” LaLota said on Monday of the final map. “When I got into this race on February 11, I got into a district that President Biden had won by 11 [percentage points]. Now it’s a district where voters were tied in 2020.”

LaLota added, “It’s safe to say my campaign had a good week — but there is six months of tough campaigning to go.”

He said he looked forward to meeting the voters and was confident in his chances.

“Bridget is more familiar with Southampton than I am, but she can’t hold a candle to me in many of the other towns in the district,” he said.

Fleming could not be reached for comment, but her campaign issued a pair of statements, one after the maps were finalized, and a second after Kahn dropped out and endorsed Fleming.

“The new congressional lines issued by Judge [Patrick] McAllister late last night make NY-01 more competitive than ever. As I have for over a year, I will continue to run to represent NY-01,” she said in the first release. “Long Islanders need a champion in Washington. A champion for workers. A champion for the environment. A champion for women’s rights. A champion for all. Our work continues.”

“I want to thank Kara for running a great race,” Fleming said in the second statement. “Kara has been a model public servant with an extraordinary work ethic and commitment to bettering the lives of Long Islanders.”

Before Democrats, who hold majorities in both the State Assembly and State Senate, redrew the state’s congressional maps, the 1st District basically covered eastern Suffolk County from north to south. In February, Democrats proposed a new map that would include the East End, but then extend west to Oyster Bay along the North Shore. It also split western Southampton Town into two districts.

But Republicans sued, arguing that the maps were gerrymandered to favor Democrats, which is prohibited by the State Constitution, and that the Democrats did not have the constitutional authority to draw the maps on their own. The party did so after a nonpartisan commission charged with the task and made up equally of Democrats and Republicans could not reach a consensus.

Republicans challenged the maps by filing suit in Steuben County, and McAllister, a State Supreme Court justice, ruled in their favor. Democrats were confident they would prevail, but both a panel of Appellate Division judges and the state’s highest court, the Court of Appeals, upheld the Republican challenge, and sent the case back to McAllister, a Republican, to name a special master to redraw the maps.

In his first attempt, Cervas redrew the 1st District map to resemble the previous map, although it was somewhat larger, and included the five East End towns, and eastern Brookhaven town from Patchogue to Port Jefferson.

The final map includes the East End but extends along the north shore to the Nassau County line, taking in a portion of the 3rd Congressional District. The new map also moves the southern portion of Brookhaven, including parts of Manorville and Calverton, into the 2nd Congressional District. All of Southampton Town is back in the 1st District.

When Democrats initially redrew the maps, their candidates would have been favored in 22 of 26 districts. There are now 15 safe Democratic districts, three Republican districts, and eight toss-ups.