Debate on Congressional Redistricting in South Carolina continues

COLUMBIA, SC (WOLO) — The Supreme Court’s ruling on Louisiana’s redistricting case has led some Republican lawmakers here at home to push for Congressional redistricting.

But with South Carolina’s primaries just weeks away, it may be an uphill battle for its proponents.

Governor Henry McMaster addressed SCOTUS’s decision and the possibility of redistricting with media on Tuesday.

“We have a strong will to see that we’re following those rulings and we ought to do that in this case as well,” says McMaster.

However the governor says he will not be pushing the legislature to redraw the state’s congressional districts — leaving lawmakers to decide next steps.

“They are the ones that can make those decisions,” he says, adding, “I think there are a lot of questions that need to be answered. They need to study the law and see if it’s wise or necessary to convene on that issue and do what they believe is right. I mean there are a lot of parts you have to have each house agreeing to do it. You have to have a big vote to get it done. There are a lot of parts to it, it’s difficult to predict.”

Republican Senate Majority Leader Shane Massey also saying redistricting could help Democrats saying in January, “We’re at 6-1 right now, I think if you get too cute with this, that it could very easily go to 5-2 or 4-3.”

On Wednesday morning, Democratic Representative Spencer Whetmore laid into fellow House Rules Committee Members after an amendment to look into the redistricting of South Carolina’s seven Congressional districts.

“Honestly just when I think we can’t get more sycophantic or obsequious, we sink to a new low. We’re so afraid of upsetting the 9% of South Carolinians that vote in the Republican primaries that we trip all over ourselves to do their biddings,” she says, adding, “And now ‘Daddy Trump’ calls and needs to grasp at some power and once again we jump and run, ‘Yessir Yessir.’ And in some ways it’s kind of ironic, because it’s the party’s weaponization of the Voting Rights Act that got us into this mess in the first place where we only care about primary voters.”

Former Democratic Congressman Joe Cunningham responded to the possibility of redistricting as well by saying on social media in part, “If the SC GOP wants to turn one safe Democratic seat into multiple swing seats in a Democratic year, I’m not moving the rake.”

ABC Columbia’s Lee Williams spoke with the SC Election Commission’s new Executive Director, Conway Belangia over the phone, who says he believes Congressional districting would leave voters confused and upset — with overseas ballots for military members already sent out, and early voting beginning on may 26th.

Belangia also told Williams Congressional primaries would have to be pushed to August and would cost at least $2 million.

Jace Woodrum with the ACLU also responded to the idea of Congressional redistricting saying, “In a representative democracy, voters choose their elected officials, not the other way around.”

The final day of SC General Session is May 14th.