Malliotakis Appeals NY Court’s Order to Redraw Congressional District

Rep. Nicole Malliotakis (R-N.Y.) on Jan. 26 appealed a New York court order that struck down her congressional district as violating the state constitution.

Malliotakis and a group of voters in New York’s 11th Congressional District, which covers the borough of Staten Island and southwestern Brooklyn, filed appeals at both the New York State Court of Appeals, which is the state’s highest court, and the Appellate Division of the New York Supreme Court. They have also applied to stay the judgment against her district boundaries, pending the appeal.

“Time is of the essence in this matter, as the [lower court judgement] has now thrown New York’s 2026 Congressional Election—slated to begin on February 24, 2026—into chaos,” Bennet J. Moskowitz, the attorney for Malliotakis and the voters, wrote in a letter to the Court of Appeals.

“Absent such relief by February 10, [we] will need to seek emergency relief from the U.S. Supreme Court, given that this case involves federal constitutional issues and federal elections.”

In a brief, Moskowitz argued that the current 11th District map was drawn according to its historic borders.

“[The map] placed the boundaries of New York’s 11th Congressional District largely in-line with the boundaries that had defined this district in every congressional map for decades,” Moskowitz wrote.

On Jan. 21, Justice Jeffrey Pearlman of the New York Supreme Court Trial Division ruled that the 11th District violated Article III, section (4)(c)(1) of the Constitution of New York. The provision in question bars the state’s Independent Redistricting Commission from drawing boundaries that result in the “denial or abridgement of racial or language minority voting rights.”

“Based on the facts presented by the expert witness reports and on the record, it is clear to the Court that the current district lines of CD-11 are a contributing factor in the lack of representation for minority voters,” Pearlman wrote in his ruling.

He held that the inclusion of southwestern Brooklyn in the district meant black and Latino voters there, who historically vote for Democrats, would have their voting power diluted by Staten Island, whose voters are largely white and usually vote for Republicans.

Pearlman also ordered the commission to draw a new map for the district and present it by Feb. 6, noting that “time is of the essence to fix the congressional lines in this case.” Candidates for office in New York must collect signatures for petitions from voters in their districts to get on the ballot. The process for circulating petitions begins on Feb. 24.

The law firm that filed the suit against Malliotakis’s district, Elias Law Group, is known for representing the Democratic Party and progressive organizations in election law cases. Democrats may receive an electoral advantage if the maps in the district are redrawn.

“We are pleased that the court correctly recognized that the current district lines have systematically diluted the votes of Black and Latino Staten Islanders, despite decades of demographic growth in those communities,” Aria Branch, a partner at Elias Law Group, wrote of Pearlman’s decision.

Malliotakis has criticized the lawsuit as a political attack.

“Democrats can’t beat me on merit, policy and debate,” Malliotakis wrote on Jan. 21 on social media.

“So what do they do? They file a meritless lawsuit claiming our district disenfranchises minorities to take out the first minority to represent the district and steal our seat.

“We will not allow them, or a judge who previously served as chief of staff for Kathy Hochul, to silence the voters of our district.”