SoMdNews.com: New state district map puts Miller in Charles

A committee appointed by Gov. Martin O’Malley released its recommendations for a new state legislative map Friday evening that reduces the number of districts that cross county lines and increases the amount of so-called “majority-minority” districts.

Though lawmakers were still busy early this week examining details of the proposal, initial reactions indicated the map is unlikely to draw as much criticism as the new congressional districts that were signed into law Oct. 20.

The proposed map includes 12 districts where a majority of the residents are black, up from 10 on the current map and another four “majority-minority” districts, including District 28 in Charles County.

Also notably, the recommendations include for the first time in state history a majority Hispanic district. As proposed, District 47B in Prince George’s County is more than 63 percent Hispanic.

The proposal also cuts the number of districts that cross county boundaries from 14 to 13.