Cartwright weighs in on changes

Congressman Matt Cartwright, D-17, reacted to the news that his district would no longer include Carbon and Schuylkill counties.

“Obviously we’ve studied this new map pretty carefully. I was not a party to the litigation, so I really didn’t get a vote. Looking at what they came up with, for me, it’s bittersweet. On the one hand, I lose three counties that I have come to love and where I have formed lasting and, I hope, lifelong friendships: Schuylkill County, Carbon County and Northampton County.

“On the other hand, I do pick up some wonderful places, namely Pike and Wayne counties — beautiful scenic areas with pristine lakes and waterways including a much longer stretch of the Delaware River than I currently represent, also some terrific institutions of higher education, Misericordia University and the Luzerne County Community College.

“Obviously it’s going to be more work for me to get around and meet new people, and figure out their concerns. But I was never afraid of hard work,” he said.

Cartwright said that his campaign priorities won’t change much as a result of the new map.

“I’ll probably learn some specific local concerns, and from my seat on the House Appropriations Committee, I may be in a position to address some of them.”

While there have been many different ideas of what the map could look like, Cartwright said the state Supreme Court’s is the one he takes seriously, barring any intervention from the U.S. Supreme Court.

“I’ve probably seen 30-40 potential maps over the last month. you just learn to take them with a grain of salt. The Supreme Court’s map that is the one that counts.”