Frequently Asked Questions

Why is the General Assembly redrawing Congressional and legislative district lines?  

 

Federal and state laws require it. Federal law requires districts to have about equal populations so that everyone's vote has equal importance ("One person, one vote"). State law requires that Congressional and legislative district lines be redrawn every 10 years. The districts must be based on the federal census and consistent with federal constitutional standards.

Who draws the lines?  

 

A bipartisan Reapportionment Committee is charged with preparing the plan and the General Assembly must approve it by September 15, 2021 with a two-thirds vote in each chamber. The committee is made up of eight legislators (two from each party's caucus in the Senate and House of Representatives).

If the General Assembly does not approve a plan by the September 15 deadline, a nine-member Reapportionment Commission is formed. The commission must prepare a plan by November 30, 2021. The four top legislative leaders designate eight members (two each) to the commission, whom the governor appoints. The eight appointees must select a state elector as the ninth member.

The 2021 committee members were: Representative Gregg Haddad (Co-chair), Senate Minority Leader Kevin Kelly (Co-chair), Senator Doug McCrory, House Minority Leader Vin Candelora, Representative Tammy Exum, Senator Paul Formica, Representative Jason Perillo and Senator Mary Abrams.

The 2021 commission members are: Speaker of the House Matt Ritter, Senate Minority Leader Kevin Kelly, Senate President Pro Tempore Martin Looney, House Minority Leader Vincent Candelora, Senator Paul Formica, House Majority Leader Jason Rojas, Senate Majority Leader Bob Duff and Representative Jason Perillo.

When does it have to be done?  

 

The Reapportionment Committee must complete its task by September 15, 2021. If it does not agree on a plan by that deadline, the Reapportionment Commission must agree upon a plan by November 30, 2021. The first general election held in the new districts will be in November 2022.

What happens if the Reapportionment Commission does not agree on a plan?  

 

If the commission cannot agree on a plan, the constitution empowers the state Supreme Court to make them do the job. Alternatively, the court can draw the district boundaries itself, which it must do no later than February 15, 2022. (See the 2011 Timeline for information on state Supreme Court proceedings.)

What will be the districts' average population?  

 

Connecticut has 3,605,944 people, according to the federal Census Bureau. The federal government reapportioned the Congressional representatives among the states and determined that Connecticut will continue to have five. Each district's population is one-fifth of the state's population, or 721,188.

The General Assembly (perhaps through the Reapportionment Committee, as part of its plan-drawing responsibility) must determine the number of seats in each chamber of the state house. Under the state constitution, the size of the House of Representatives can range from 125 to 225 and the size of the Senate can range from 30 to 50. If the number of districts remains the same, the ideal populations will be as shown below. The ideal population for these legislative districts will decrease slightly as a result of the adjustment Connecticut is making to reallocate prisoner data from prisons to the locations prisoners resided prior to incarceration.

How has the population changed in recent decades?  

 

2002 2012 2022
State House of Representatives 22,553 23,670 23,880
State Senate 94,599 99,280 100,165
U.S. House 681,113 714,819 721,188