January 11, 2012

Contact: Scott Forrester, (505) 934-5681

Albuquerque, NM - The following is a statement from Javier Gonzales, Chairman of the Democratic Party of New Mexico, on the approval of a compromise redistricting plan for State Senate districts:

"This compromise plan is not a victory for one political party or another, it's a victory for New Mexicans and the constitutional principle of one person, one vote. Judge Hall chose a map based on fairness and equality for every voter.

"While this is a victory in the Senate, the fight to protect the power of the vote in New Mexico continues. It was a shame to see the Governor's cynical game plan to not participate in redistricting, hire a partisan map-drawer and attempt to win the favor of the court when there were multiple other plans that were less partisan, more fair to voters and more reflective of the massive population shifts we are experiencing.

"The Governor vetoed the democratically drawn map, forced the taxpayers to pay for her lawsuit, then pulled a fast one to rig the game in Republicans' favor. That never should have flown with the judge, and we will continue to fight for every New Mexican until all of our legal options have been exhausted."

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