Minnesota Courts Release New Political District Maps

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) – A Minnesota panel of five judges released newly drawn congressional and legislative district maps on Tuesday.

Minnesota’s 2nd District in Congress, represented by Democratic U.S. Rep. Angie Craig, got smaller and less rural due to increases in suburban population growth over the last decade in the northern part of the district. Despite the shifts in its boundaries, the district appears to remain the most politically competitive statewide as Craig heads for a rematch with 2020 Republican candidate Tyler Kistner.

The 3rd District, which covers the western suburbs of Minneapolis, and the 4th and 5th districts that include St. Paul and Minneapolis, respectively, also shrank geographically as the population grew. The boundaries of the mostly rural 1st District expanded as population growth lagged in other parts of the state despite an increase in Rochester, the district’s biggest city.

The 8th District shifted further west and now encompasses all of Minnesota’s Native American reservations north of the Twin Cities. The 7th remains along most of the state’s western border.

Shrinking or stagnated populations in rural districts caused them to get larger geographically.

A preliminary list from Senate Republicans showed four incumbent pairings of Republican senators that ended up in the same district due to shifted boundaries, two pairings between Democratic senators, and one district where a Republican and Democrat were paired.