Lewiston retains close economic and cultural ties with northern communities.

The Maine Legislature faces a choice that will have a strong impact on Lewiston. State lawmakers will vote on a new map to more evenly divide the state’s congressional districts based on new U.S. Census data.

During the public hearing on the maps, I went to the State House to argue against the radical Republican plan that would move Lewiston and all of Androscoggin County into the 1st Congressional District, putting the city in direct competition with Portland. The plan proposes to move 360,000 Maine people, seven counties, and 139 municipalities from one district to another.

That plan shifts 25 percent of Maine people to satisfy a small change of 8,669 in population between the current districts.

The bipartisan reapportionment commission voted by a narrow margin last month to support the moderate Democratic plan that would move less than 20,000 people. However, some Republicans have suggested they will ram their drastic proposal through with a majority vote.

Such a partisan move would require the Republican-controlled Legislature to change the law which states that two-thirds of the Legislature must approve a congressional map or the map will be drawn by the state supreme court.

Changing the rules to win partisan gain is wrong.

I strongly urge the Legislature to reject this approach and any radical plan. The original Republican proposal is bad for the people of Lewiston and the state of Maine.

Worse, it goes directly against the public testimony heard in Augusta last month. Four of every five people who came to testify said the Republican proposal was too radical.

For more than a generation, Lewiston has been the dominant player in Maine’s 2nd Congressional District. As the largest city in the district, our infrastructure, health care, education, social service and cultural needs have been a priority for the district’s representative in Congress.

Over time, the district has been represented by Republicans and Democrats. Under the plan advanced by the Republican Party, I fear that Lewiston would take a back seat to the interests, needs and wants of the wealthier and more densely populated communities to the south and on the coast. I firmly believe that would be a loss for the city.

Lewiston has been dealt many tough blows when it comes to needed economic development. Eleven years ago, Lewiston lost the opportunity for the U.S. Postal Service to build a mail-handling facility in our area. That would have created hundreds of needed jobs in our community, but the more populous, wealthier neighbors to the south exerted their influence to get the facility.

More recently, Amtrak service was expanded from Portland to Brunswick instead of to Lewiston. Yet again, the political clout of the coast won out.

Just in this past session, a proposal for a Lewiston casino received less legislative support than other proposed gaming facilities. Our city has seen the short end of the deal many times.

While lines on a map won’t right all of these wrongs, I am certain that moving Lewiston to the 1st Congressional District will make it worse.

In recent years, we have seen significant federal investments in our airport, veterans’ health facilities, local cultural institutions and hospitals.

These efforts would be diminished if Lewiston were in the shadow of Portland and South Portland.

Lewiston also retains close economic and cultural ties with communities across the northern reaches of Maine. We also share cultural ties to the north. As a Franco-American, our heritage belongs with the inland north where our ancestors settled many generations ago.

Redistricting shouldn’t be about dividing Maine for political gain. I urge lawmakers to recognize the differences between the needs of the coastal and interior communities. Drawing different lines on a map won’t erase these differences; it will only dilute the interests and attention given to the interior.

Lawmakers should listen to the public, put partisanship aside and follow the law.

Laurent Gilbert Sr. is mayor of Lewiston.