‘We Are the Most Gerrymandered Republican State in the Country’: GOP Leader Speaks Out Against Redistricting Effort

State Senate Majority Leader Shane Massey (R-SC) spoke out against redistricting efforts in South Carolina as he declared, “We are the most gerrymandered Republican state in the country.”

He expressed his concerns during a Senate subcommittee hearing on Tuesday as South Carolina lawmakers consider adopting a bill that would redraw the state’s congressional map. Massey had previously warned about further redistricting in his state, removing the last Democratic Party-held seat, arguing that thin political margins in the state could actually backfire and help Democrats flip competitive races.

The hearing comes amid a series of redistricting pushes across the country, particularly the southern U.S., after a Supreme Court ruling in Louisiana voided a majority-Black Congressional district and opened the door for more states to redraw ahead of the upcoming midterm elections.

Massey expressed his opposition to redistricting efforts in South Carolina on the basis that the state is already “heavily gerrymandered” and is ahead of other states in that respect:

I said earlier that if the U.S. House goes to a Democratic majority, it won’t be because of South Carolina. That’s because we are already heavily gerrymandered. We are the most gerrymandered Republican state in the country already, and we did that intentionally. There have been celebrated changes in Florida over the last week. Those celebrated changes in Florida get them to where we are now. Yesterday, the U.S. Supreme Court allowed Alabama to use a map that it had passed but had been previously stopped by the courts. Yesterday, they allowed Alabama to use this map they had passed before. Alabama also has seven Congressional districts. That map would allow Alabama to use a 6-1 map. The U.S. Supreme Court decision allowed Alabama to do what we have already done.

On Thursday, Massey told reporters from South Carolina’s The State that he is not trying to sway any votes.

“I think this is every senator for himself, herself, as far as what they think is the best thing to do for the people they represent,” he told the outlet.

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