A committee of Massachusetts legislators has proposed new district lines for House and Senate representation based on shifts in population and an increase in minority populations. Changes here in the North End / Waterfront are minor with the neighborhood continuing to stay entirely in the House 3rd Suffolk District and Senate First Suffolk and Middlesex District.
The 3rd Suffolk District House seat, currently held by Rep. Aaron Michlewitz, keeps all of the North End, Chinatown and much of Downtown but loses some of the South End geographic area. The district population decreases by 2% to 40,058 residents, near the average of other House districts. Of that amount, 28,613 are identified as White, 8040 as Asian, 2057 Hispanic and 1868 Black.
The 1st Suffolk and Middlesex Senate seat, currently held by Sen. Anthony Petruccelli, gains 4.5% in population to 171,104 residents of which 60% are identified as White, 5% Black, 11% Asian and 23% Hispanic. The district still contains all of the North End / Waterfront and much of Downtown Boston, as well as East Boston, Winthrop and parts of Revere and Cambridge.
Elsewhere in the State, the redrawing of district lines significantly increases the number of “majority-minority” districts (see Globe article). After a public comment period, the proposal goes to the State Legislature for approval. Federal redistricting is also expected to occur this year where Massachusetts is expected to lose one seat in the House of Representatives.
The proposed maps can be seen in their entirety at this website. The proposed and old maps for the 3rd Suffolk District are shown below.
Proposed New Districts for Mass. House of Representatives (Source: malegislature.gov)
