AK Redistricting Board: Attorney Fees Decision Deferred Until After Court's Full Redistricting Opinion Comes Out - UPDATED

Alaska's Redistricting process for 2020 would appear to be pretty much over.  All that's left to close things out (or rekindle the process) is the Supreme Court's full opinion  explaining their reasoning for saying pairing Eagle River with the southern Hillside and pairing JBER with Chugiak were political gerrymandering.  That opinion could either conclude that the interim plan that is being used for 2022 elections will be the permanent plan for the rest of the decade or the Board can have the map back to do some last Senate pairing decisions.  

There really is very little the Board can do in the way of additional changes that would comply with the Court's orders up til now.  There isn't anything to really play with after the two Eagle River/Chugiak districts are paired.  They could change how JBER (after being severed from Chugiak) is paired which would cause  one or two more Senate districts to be redone.  But why do that?  It won't benefit the Board majority's interest in helping Republicans and it means residents and candidates in those districts have to make yet another adjustment for no real benefit.  

No word on when that decision will come out.  The longer it takes, the likelier it is that 2022 will be the permanent plan.  Why? 

The Board and staff have to reconvene if they get this back.  They already lost most of the staff.  I just called the remaining staffer's (Peter Torkelson) phone and it's no longer a working number.   [UPDATE  7/20/22:  Peter Torkelson let me know he is still working for the Board.  His email is still good.]

Potential candidates are already looking ahead to 2024.  But, of course, any changes would be limited to two, or at most, three Senate seats.  House seats won't be affected.  

But, on the Supreme Court docket, going back to June, is a request from the Girdwood plaintiffs for attorney fees from the Redistricting Board.  The Board, of course, objects.  The last event/item on the docket is from June 23, 2022.

"On consideration of the motion of Ken Waugh, Louis Theiss, and JennfierWingard for attorney’s fees filed on 6/6/2022, and the opposition filed by the Alaska Redistricting Board on 6/20/2022,

IT IS ORDERED: This motion is STAYED until the opinion in this matter isissued.

Entered at the direction of an individual justice."

I'd note that only the orders from the court are available on the public docket.  

At a traditional news medium, this is the kind of thing they report on a slow news day.  On a personal blog, it's what you put up when you are trying to catch up and don't have time for a more complicated post.