The surge in California's Latino population has offered state lawmakers now drawing new congressional districts a ripe opportunity to boost the number of Latinos representing the state in Congress.
On the north and south ends of Los Angeles, in the San Joaquin Valley and along the Mexican border, in particular, Latino advocates contend that their sheer numbers should result in new seats where Latinos are a dominant force.
But their aspirations are colliding with a powerful group of Democrats: non-Latino incumbents whose continued success could be thwarted by Latino challengers.
The conflict has put Democrats who control the Legislature in a bind.
As they redraw California's political maps in the next month, should they offer Latinos, one of the party's core constituencies, a chance to strengthen their clout in Washington? Or should they carve districts primarily to get Democrats reelected regardless of ethnicity?
Party leaders have left little doubt that incumbent protection will prevail. But with California gaining a House seat this year, raising its delegation to 53 members, Latino groups are pushing for districts that give Latinos a greater voice in electing members of Congress, if not a seat outright.
"We expect incumbents to accommodate the growing population of Latinos as much as possible," said Amadis Raul Velez, a redistricting specialist at the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund. "The reason California has a 53rd District is because the Latino community has grown so large. Given that as a starting point, you have to have greater representation."
The redistricting of congressional and legislative districts occurs every 10 years, flowing from the once-a-decade census.
Lines must be redrawn so that each member of Congress or the two branches of the statehouse represent roughly the same number of people. But how to do it is left, in California, to the very legislators whose careers--or ability to advance--are on the line.
In California, Democrats will maintain their overall hold on the two houses and the congressional delegation because they control both the Legislature which draws the lines and the governor's office, which signs off on the new map.
But exactly which Democrats will be given an advantage is still up in the air, and is prompting behind-the-scenes tussles among demographic groups loyal to the party.
