The 11 public hearings scheduled by the South Carolina House Redistricting Ad Hoc Committee have wrapped up. Residents were able to offer testimony both virtually and in person during the last hearing on Oct. 4
Among those to speak was Zhe “Jer” Fan, of Greer, S.C. The woman said she and her husband have moved into the Palmetto State since the last census in 2010.
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“As an immigrant, I have been a lawful citizen for over a decade in the US and have recently applied for citizenship,” she said. “I am paying extra attention to redistricting because I value my civic duty and because this is one of the very few countries where citizens from all walks of life can have a say in self-governance. Additionally, I do not want to be put in a group just because of my race nor do I want others to assume my social or political views because of how I look. I’m an American who lives in Greer, S.C.”
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Suzanne Penuel of Lancaster, S.C., said the lawmakers need to go to greater lengths to balance the state legislature.
“Recent legislation such as the K-12 mask mandate bans and the attempts to restrict freedom of speech in the form of what I can only call hysteria about critical race theory is a clear indication that South Carolina’s government has tipped a little too far in the direction of an uninformed, very ideological and very vocal subset of the populace,” she said. “One of the only solutions to that is to draw districts that will make it more likely that extremists voices will be balanced out by others. I’ve got to acknowledge that those other voices may be just as uninformed, but at least there will be the possibility of moderation in lawmaking when the ideologies have to compete with each other in more meaningful ways than they do now.”
Oveta Glover, president of the Columbia branch of the NAACP, advised the committee to pay attention to how they draw the new districts.
She said, “Redistricting should ensure or secure competitive districts and that voters pick their elected officials. Redrawing the lines should reflect fairness for all, not just for now, but for always, especially in our rural areas.” Glover added, “Drawing the lines should not be drawn to protect politicians or to create safe districts where elections are uncompetitive or uncontested. Partisan redistricting should be avoided because it puts political considerations ahead of the community interests and further erodes the public’s trust in elected officials.”
John McLean said he believe the Department of Justice has gotten “too big for its britches”.
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He said, “I had Joe Wilson as my Congressman, but they gerrymandered him out because, as you recall, they got him in Aiken, Lexington and parts of Richland. One time, he had to go all the way down to Beaufort. Now you got Jim Clyburn, who’s from Charleston County, he runs from Charleston County all the way to Columbia. You need people to live close by in your neighborhood where you can call them and talk to them. … I got nothing personally against Jim Clyburn but who’s going to run against him? Nobody, not a soul unless it’s a black Democrat. If you’re a white Republican you’re the white mouse in the race because you’re the minority.”
Videos of all the public hearings available here. The committee is continuing to accept submissions of maps via its website.
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The South Carolina Senate Judiciary Committee’s Redistricting Subcommittee is also encouraging public input on the redistricting process. It has set Oct. 8 as the deadline to submit plans via a portal at https://redistricting.scsenate.gov/index.html Clicking on the “PLAN SUBMISSION” link connects to a form with instructions. A submitted plan needs to comply with the 2021 Senate Redistricting Guidelines and 2021 Senate Public Submissions Policy which are on that website.
The subcommittee, chaired by Sen Luke Rankin (R-Horry) is responsible for redrawing Congressional districts and state senate district. It held 10 public hearings across the state during July and August. Videos of all 10 meetings can be viewed here.
Dana Lynn McIntyre is a Staff Reporter with The Augusta Press. You can reach her at dana@theaugustapress.com.
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