ABSTRACT
While the decennial census results required a realignment of the city council districts to reflect population shifts, a new city charter required more substantial changes. New York State law vests in the state legislature the responsibility to apportion the state for congressional elections. To assist in this process, the legislature has established the New York State Legislative Task Force on Demographic Research and Reapportionment, known as "LATFOR." Nationally, as in New York, the broad population trends show that while the numbers of Hispanics and Asian Americans are sharply increasing, those of African Americans are growing at a lesser rate. New York is unique in its inclusion of sizeable populations of three "protected classes": per the 1990 census, non-Hispanic blacks represent 25.2 percent of the population, Hispanics 24.4 percent, and non-Hispanic Asians 6.7 percent. The Voting Rights Act protects the rights of communities of persons from the "protected classes.".
