Mat-Su Borough appeals redistricting decision

The Mat-Su Borough has appealed the decision of an Alaska Superior Court judge that rejected their lawsuit against the Alaska Redistricting Board.

On Thursday afternoon, the borough issued a statement describing some of the reasons for the appeal as well as a copy of the documents filed to the Alaska Supreme Court. 

The borough’s initial lawsuit challenged the legislative district map produced by the redistricting board late last year. Its claims include overpopulation of districts, dilution of votes in the Valley, and districts of sizes and shapes that do not conform to the Alaska Constitution. Judge Thomas Matthews ruled against the Mat-Su Borough in an opinion issued Wednesday.

Thursday’s appeal by the Mat-Su Borough continues the claims from the original suit and says that Judge Matthews erred in his ruling.  In addition, the appeal notes that Matthews found the Alaska Redistricting Board in violation of the Open Meetings Act.  The borough claims that the “hundreds of pages of communications amongst the board members” that took place out of the public eye are grounds for the Alaska Supreme Court to throw out the entire redistricting map and start the process over.

Like the original case, the appeals process has an accelerated timeline.  Candidates are required to file for state office by June 1^st, and a deadline of April 1^st has been set to allow potential candidates a sixty-day filing window.