Progressives and Democrats were cheered last week when New York state’s highest court tossed out the 2022 congressional district map and ordered the state’s Independent Redistricting Commission to draw a new one. A fairer map could flip as many as five seats back to Democratic.
But what sort of Democrat? In New York’s 16th District, a nasty primary fight is brewing between incumbent Congressman Jamaal Bowman, an African American progressive, and Westchester County Executive George Latimer, who is white and centrist. Before the 2022 redistricting, more of Bowman’s district was in the Bronx, which is heavily Black and Latino. Now, most of the seat is in affluent, largely white Westchester County. {read}