You have no doubt heard the final Republican redistricting maps have been drawn and there has been strong reaction across the State. This is pure, unadulterated gerrymandering at its worst. We have to react.

This week there will be two sessions, one on Tuesday at 10 am, and one on Wednesday at 5 pm for comments. You will be able to watch but not participate (aka testify) via youtube. You may attend in person to testify, or you can submit your testimony online, or send it to someone to read in the session.  

If you are going to testify in person  (THANK YOU!!!)
Upload your testimony before or after you testify:
http://gencourt.state.nh.us/house/committees/committee_websites/Redistricting_2021/default.aspx– 

If you are going to testify just in writing:
Upload your testimony before or after you testify: http://gencourt.state.nh.us/house/committees/committee_websites/Redistricting_2021/default.aspx
Send an email to the committee:  
HouseSpecialCommitteeOnRedistricting@leg.state.nh.us with your testimony attached and explain your reason for not coming in person:  Concern for COVID, inconsiderate members of the committee not wearing masks, too far away.  Share you are not too pleased about not having a Zoom access to be able to testify remotely!

This Sunday, November 7, @6 pm, Open Democracy will review all the maps with their FAIR MAPS mapping teams and will help anyone with their testimony for Tuesday/Wednesday. You can register here for the Sunday Zoom @ 6 pm
https://www.opendemocracyaction.org/mapathonreview1107

Here is the link to the Open Democracy analysis on the proposed Congressional Map. 
https://www.opendemocracynh.com/redistricting/USCongressionalMapAnalysis.pdf

Here is the link to view all the proposed maps, by both the Majority and the Minority.
http://www.gencourt.state.nh.us/house/committees/committee_websites/Redistricting_2021/plans.aspx

And finally, if you are not convinced this is egregious, read The New Hampshire Bulletin article on the proposed overhaul of the state’s congressional district.

Please join on Sunday @6 pm, even if you can’t testify next week, and hear  what’s in store for Grafton.

And what a week it was! Redistricting listening session, voter outreach, Women’s March, all in Grafton County! Here is the GCD’s latest newsletter. https://mailchi.mp/ba9dbbfb800b/end-of-july-10451992.

If you enjoyed it, you can sign up for it here: http://eepurl.com/gCr-75

Thanks to co-organizers Nancy Graham and Kari Millstein for bringing us together on the Lebanon Green for the Grafton County Women’s March this Saturday.

Over 100 people showed up despite the threat of showers and listened to our local legislators read letters from Senators Hassan and Shaheen, and Congresswoman Kuster in support of the Women’s March. Rally goers were invited up to share why this event for reproductive rights and abortion justice was so important to them. Their stories were powerful and spoke to the personal and generational impact anti-abortion laws had had on themselves and their families long after. 

Watch Christian Avard’s short video of the march around the green. 

ACTION: Email joseph.d.kenney@nh.gov, your Executive Councilor, to reinstate funding for healthcare contracts with Planned Parenthood and two other family planning providers.

Grafton County welcomed members of the Special Committee on Redistricting to the County courthouse on Tuesday.  

Thanks to those who held signs out front and to those who offered testimony. It was a tremendous group effort.

Open Democracy,  a non-partisan not-for-profit group,  also brought some of  their new FAIR MAPS. Below is the link to their material. Scroll down to see the comparative maps 2010-2020. 
http://gencourt.state.nh.us/remotecommittee/redistricting/showtestimony.aspx?&id=96685

You can listen here to the testimonies of Grafton County residents; it starts at the first testimony: https://youtu.be/AeC6IKny_Pg?t=858

Then on Thursday, the Redistricting Committee had a committee meeting where they discussed the pros and cons of the ideal number of representatives and the challenges of redistricting when city wards have not yet been finalized. David Andrews of Open Democracy Action presented the method he used to maximize the number of single-town districts as required by the constitution. Here is the InDepthNh article:
http://indepthnh.org/2021/09/30/restricting-committee-sets-house-seats-at-400/

ACTON: Email the Special Committee on Redistricting members, and ask the Committee to hold another round of hearings AFTER maps are drawn for the public to react and offer input directly to the committee.
Group email:  
HouseSpecialCommitteeOnRedistricting@leg.state.nh.us
Or list of committee members: 
http://gencourt.state.nh.us/house/committees/committeedetails.aspx?id=1532

The Voter Outreach Committee of Grafton County Dems held a workshop for participants in their deep canvassing project. Meeting at Lakeside Park in Enfield, a dozen people reviewed canvassing strategies to reach infrequent voters and practiced conversation in role-playing exercises.

The pilot project is underway in Enfield,  Canaan and Lebanon this fall, aiming to develop a model for voter engagement that can be used throughout Grafton County in the future. 

This was the fourth workshop for the Voter Outreach team. The first two workshops were on Zoom, and the third and fourth were held outside under the new Lakeside Park pavilion in Enfield. 

Thanks to the team led by Martha Rich, and the many volunteers who showed up in all the workshops! 

Back to the Strafford County redistricting testimony from last night and our retired UNH professor who wrote software that not only fulfills the constitutional requirements but minimizes the number of towns and wards not given their own reps. Powerful! It’s a Youtube clip, about 8 minutes long and is shared from the start of his testimony.

https://youtu.be/aiuWe068iyA?t=3614

Reproductive rights are under attack in New Hampshire and across the United States. As this assault on health care and personal freedom around the country continues, it’s important to stand up and make your voice heard.  

Here are two Women’s Marches happening in Grafton County on October 2nd! Please join and share with others.

North Country  1:00 PM

https://act.womensmarch.com/event/oct-2-2021-march/1853?source=map&akid=

Great North Woods Welcome Center. 25 Park St Lancaster NH 03584

________________________________________________________

Lebanon  2:00pm

https://act.womensmarch.com/event/oct-2-2021-march/2349?source=map&akid=

Colburn Park, 51 Park St. Lebanon NH

Forceful testimony last night at redistricting hearing in Strafford county. The committee is using a program written by a non-programmer designed over 10 years ago to create districts. His program is all based on numbers and does not include communities of interest and is not proprietary. We heard testimony from a retired UNH computer science professor and programmer who has written his own program and said it really wasn’t that difficult to include communities of interest. And he would share out the program.

InDepthNH Paula Tracy

This week, just when you thought the New Hampshire legislature couldn’t bow down any more to far right extremists, they went even further.

Sign up for a women’s rights march and redistricting testimony workshop. Catch up on what a week it was with articles and youtube clips, including an interviews with Rep.Marsh.

Read the newsletter here