Trial ends on challenges to political maps

12/19/2003

ARIZONA DAILY SUN

PHOENIX (AP) -- A trial on Arizona 's new congressional and legislative districts ended with challengers arguing that a state commission gave short shrift to a voter mandate and the commission saying the charges were hollow.

Judge Kenneth Fields, who presided over the non-jury trial in Maricopa County Superior Court, heard closing arguments Thursday.

Both maps generally favor Republicans, and separate suits filed by Democrats on the congressional and legislative maps contend that the commission did not create enough competitive districts.

The challengers want Fields to order the five-member commission to change the maps it drew for use in 2004-2010 elections.

The commission was created as a result of a 2000 state constitutional amendment approved by voters to take redistricting out of the hands of legislators. The five members include two Democrats, two Republicans and one independent.

The amendment told the commission to draw equal-population districts and take into account goals that included communities of interest, compactness and competitiveness -- whether individual districts could realistically be won by both major parties' candidates.

The core of the main challenges to each map is that the commission failed to give a high enough priority to the constitutionally set goal of creating competitive districts -- not considering that goal until it was too late in the process and then not accepting reasonable suggestions that would have improved the maps by creating additional competitive districts.

"It was plainly dead on arrival," challengers attorney Paul Eckstein said of one proposal. "The promise of Proposition 106 was to create competitive districts and that was a promise that the IRC failed to keep."

The commission contends that it did try to create competitive districts and reviewed proposals from its own members and others but that its ability to do so was constrained, partly because the constitutional amendment put other goals ahead of creating competitive districts.

Also, the need to create districts dominated by minorities who tend to be Democrats and the fact that Republicans outnumber Democrats in Arizona combined to leave too few other Democrats to create many competitive districts, the commission contends.

"You can't look at results. You've got to look at process ... and the reasons they made those decisions," commission attorney Jose Rivera argued.

The trial started Nov. 12.

Fields has told attorneys they have until later this month to submit final papers in the case and that he will rule in January on whether to order the commission to change the maps.

However, all concerned say the losing side will appeal and that the case is likely headed to the Arizona Supreme Court for an election-year decision.