Hogan to announce redistricting reform plans ahead of 2021 Maryland General Assembly session

Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan is set to announce measures to address redistricting reform Tuesday, one day before lawmakers arrive in Annapolis for the 2021 legislative session.

The Republican governor said on Twitter that he’d address around 1 p.m. the issue of gerrymandering — redrawing legislative districts to support one political party — which is less than 24 hours before the Democrat-led Maryland General Assembly gavels in for this year’s meeting.

“Maryland is notorious for having some of the most gerrymandered districts in the nation, but we believe that voters should choose their representatives—not the other way around,” Hogan said in a Tweet.

Hogan’s announcement comes as a redrawing of the state’s legislative and congressional map looms. It was slated to occur upon completion of the 2020 U.S. census.

The governor’s remarks also follow the U.S. Supreme Court weighing in on the issue of gerrymandering in Maryland. The nation’s highest court in June of 2019 kicked the issue back to states to address through the legislative branch.

After the decision, and as Hogan pledged to push for reform, Maryland Democrats urged that gerrymandering was a national issue. Democratic leaders pointed to states that were gerrymandered in favor of Republicans.

This article will be updated.