Opinion: The Main Obstacle to Fair Representation of Latinos in New Jersey is the Democratic Party

By Martin Perez

Published April 07, 2011

Martin Perez, Esq., is president of the Latino Leadership Alliance of New Jersey, a statewide umbrella organization that advocates for Latinos.

Martin Perez, Esq., is president of the Latino Leadership Alliance of New Jersey, a statewide umbrella organization that advocates for Latinos.

New Jersey, the first state in the nation to redraw its legislative map based on data released by the 2010 Census, has again failed to re-configure boundaries to give its largest and fastest growing minority group, Latinos, a fair shot at being elected to the state legislature.

And once again, the primary obstacle to achieving a fair map for New Jersey’s alarmingly under-represented Latino population was the Democratic Party.

The map chosen by the appointed tie-breaker, Rutgers University Professor Alan Rosenthal, continued an anti-democratic tradition of prioritizing the protection of incumbents.

This year the 2010 Census results delivered a new reality to the commission that was charged with redrawing the map: the state's Latino population grew much faster than expected and was already identified as under-represented in the New Jersey legislature when the 2001 map was adopted.

Growing from 13 percent to18 percent of the population over the last 10 years, but without a single increase in state legislative representation, Latinos confronted the commission about the failed redistricting strategies of the 2001 map.

This put Democrats in the hot seat because their map was the 2001 winner, they had promoted it as the map with the best chance of remedying Latino under-representation, and the Latino population boom of the last 10 years was concentrated in "safe" (read: non-competitive) Democratic districts.

So, during this year's redistricting public hearings -- with only six Latinos among 80 Assembly members, and one Latino among 40 Senators -- Latinos complained loudly and clearly that the commission had to re-examine the failed redistricting strategies of the last map, and instead heed the example provided by the 33rd District of Hudson County.

Historically the only majority Latino district in New Jersey, the 33rd District has given New Jersey nearly 40 percent of all (seven of 19, including four Republicans) Latino state legislators ever elected, the only Latino U.S. Senator, the only Latino Speaker of the Assembly, the only Latino county party chairman -- for both the Democratic and Republican parties -- and the only two Latino congressmen, one having previously served in both the state Assembly and Senate.

But, duplicating the success of the 33rd District to achieve fair representation for Latinos would require de-prioritizing incumbency protection by the Democratic members of the commission -- a price they were unwilling to pay.

Members of The Latino Leadership Alliance of New Jersey asked the commission to build on the successful model of the 33rd District and look for other opportunities to create majority-Latino districts.

The Democratic Party opposed that reasonable request and, as a pretext for protecting entrenched incumbents, waged a disinformation campaign that such a strategy constituted "packing.â€