Pa. high court to weigh redistricting challenges, Voter ID law

Pennsylvania’s Supreme Court justices will hear arguments today over whether a new law requiring that voters show valid photo identification poses an unnecessary threat to the right to vote.

 

But voter ID isn’t the only issue on the docket: The politically hot issue of legislative redistricting is back before Pennsylvania’s highest court.

  

 

Today’s hearing before the state Supreme Court in Philadelphia focuses on the latest plan for realigning the boundaries of the 50 Senate districts and 203 House districts to conform to the 2010 census.

  

The justices rejected the original plan in January on a 4-3 vote that forced this year’s elections to be based on maps drawn in 2001.

  

Republicans who control the state redistricting panel say they have tried to address the justices’ concerns. But some challengers say the new plan does not go far enough to minimize the number of communities split into multiple districts.

  

Senate Majority Leader Dominic Pileggi says the court must decide whether those decisions should be made by the panel or delegated to a computer.