By Jay Taylor | inMaricopa
The new Congressional District 2 approved by the Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission puts Maricopa in an even larger district than the previous maps had.
The massive new district, which includes Maricopa, Casa Grande and Florence would extend to the eastern border of the state and north to the Four Corners, then west of Interstate 17, to include Flagstaff and Prescott. The committee approved the final draft congressional district map Dec. 22.
The new district encompasses six Native American reservations: Gila River, Ak-Chin, San Carlos, Fort Apache, Navajo and Hopi. The district is larger than several states.
According to one local official, it is too big for Maricopa to get the representation it deserves.
“Our congressional district is still bigger than many states and I don’t see how we can get the representation we need to help us at a federal level,” said Vice Mayor Vincent Manfredi.
But Vince Leach, who represented the city in its prior LD11, said the new district’s makeup will be beneficial to the city.
