HELENA – The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday upheld independent redistricting commissions in Montana and 12 other states, though members of the Montana panel say their work would not have changed regardless of how the court ruled because the state has just one congressional district.
The commissions are meant to limit political influence in shaping congressional districts every 10 years in accordance with U.S. Census population estimates.
The high court’s decision knocked down a Republican challenge in Arizona that would have placed the job of drawing congressional districts into lawmakers’ hands in those states.
Jim Regnier and Joe Lamson, members of the Montana Districting and Apportionment Commission, said the court case had little practical effect in Montana, where the one congressional district comprises the entire state.
The Montana commission’s job is focused on redrawing state legislative districts, and the Supreme Court’s case was specifically limited to federal races.
“Because of the population, we’ve only had one congressional district, so we haven’t done any congressional districting,” Regnier said.
Republican and Democratic legislative leaders each appoint two members to Montana’s redistricting commission. Those four members choose a fifth member who presides over the panel and often acts as a tie-breaking vote. The state Supreme Court picks the fifth commissioner, if the other members can’t decide.
The commission draws the legislative districts and submits the map to the Legislature. Lawmakers can make recommendations, but the commission makes the final decision.
Montana used to have two congressional districts, but one was eliminated after the 1990 U.S. Census. The state’s population is estimated to be more than 1 million people, but the nation’s growing population means even that milestone is no guarantee of an additional U.S. House seat after the 2020 Census.
“Each time the goal line keeps moving further and further from us,” Lamson said. “There’s no case where a state that has gone to a single district has been able to get back to two seats yet.”