LEGISLATORS BLAST REDISTRICTING PLAN

State Reps. Joe Driskill and Gene Copeland are critical of a plan prepared by the Missouri House Redistricting Commission. And Rep. Ollie Amick, D-Scott City, is upset about a last minute change Tuesday night that split his home city into two districts.

Amick and Copeland have also suggested that Rep. Dennis Ziegenhorn, D-Sikeston, was responsible for the change in the plan Tuesday that moved Amick from his district into Copeland's.

Driskill and Copeland complained that the plan favors Republicans, and charged that Democrats on the commission did not look out for the party's best interests.

Driskill said Wednesday that Republicans on the redistricting commission did a good job of "exploiting Democratic disunity" and as a result have a distinct advantage in the way the 163 districts are drawn.

"I think the Republican Party did a masterful job in dividing the Democratic commissioners in such a way as to make for a rather significant statewide win," declared Driskill. "I think they hit a home run."

"I'm sure the Republican commissioners are laughing out loud," said Copeland, D-New Madrid, chairman of the House Democratic caucus and the senior member of the General Assembly with 31 years of service. "They pulled a big coup and it worked. They got the Democrats to lay down and play dead. We'll still have our people out there beating the bushes to get elected next year, but this has been a great setback to the party."

Democrats presently hold a 98 to 65 majority in the House and Driskill said he agrees with the assessment of House Speaker Bob Griffin that the new map could give Republicans 8-12 additional seats after the 1992 elections.

Driskill said that of the 11 districts where incumbent representatives were combined, 10 of those pitted Democrats against each other. "You potentially have a loss of 10 Democrats right there," said Driskill.

Of the 11 open seats, Driskill pointed out that if Democrats win half of those, they would still be 15 or 16 seats short in a worst case scenario.

John Lichtenegger of Jackson, the Republican member of the commission from the 8th District, attributed the large number of Democrats pitted against each other to the fact there are more Democrats in the House and that population losses have come in parts of the state dominated by Democrats.

But Driskill contends Democrats on the commission were more concerned with their own special regional interests rather than a plan good for Democrats on a statewide basis.

"Democrats were not unified on this commission," maintained Driskill, who attended Tuesday night's meeting in Kansas City when a map was given approval with support from all nine Republicans and five Democrats.

"The Republican Party did an excellent job of exploiting that disunity. It was evident in Kansas City ... it was certainly impressive."

Copeland called the plan "flawed from top to bottom" and said there is no reason for the imbalance between Democrats and Republicans in combined districts. "I've never seen anything that flagrant for any party ... it's just a total shock to me."

Prior to Tuesday's commission meeting, it looked like Ziegenhorn and Amick would be in the same district. But a request by Ziegenhorn to keep more of Sikeston in his district was honored by Lichtenegger and Mel Weems of Bonne Terre, the Democratic commissioner from the 8th District.

The change split Scott City between two districts and moved Amick and Copeland together. Copeland gains Mississippi County, which is now held by Amick, and lost west New Madrid County and a portion of Pemiscot County.

"I think Lichtenegger doesn't like me," said Copeland. "He drafted a plan that did any way he could to get to me and hurt me. I think my Democratic man (Weems) either slept through the damn thing or didn't know what was going on."

Copeland charged that Ziegenhorn met with Lichtenegger Monday and flew to the commission meeting to seek a change because "he didn't want any part of running against Ollie."

He added, "I have a lot of friends in Mississippi County and feel like I can be elected, and I'm going to run again, but I don't think it is fair to the other counties or other representatives what they did."

Ziegenhorn has denied that his intentions were to avoid a race with Amick and said his only motivation was to keep more of Sikeston in one district.

Amick said he was led to believe the map had been set, only to find out Wednesday night while at a meeting on health care in Branson, that the plan had been changed.

"Scott City is split, Oran is split," said Amick. "These are things I had been led to believe from comments of commission members were not going to happen because they wanted compact and contiguous districts."

Amick said he plans to appear at a commission public hearing in St. Louis Tuesday to express his concern about the plan. "Over the years North Scott County has been treated like stepchildren in redistricting," Amick said.

He said he has not made up his mind whether to run against Copeland and that he plans to keep his options open until after Tuesday's hearing. Amick, serving his second term, did not rule out moving to another part of Scott City that would put him in Ziegenhorn's district.

Driskill, serving his fifth term from the 154th District, is still hoping to alter his district a little before a final plan is approved next month. However, the Democratic lawmaker noted that the new area given him by the commission is even more Democratic than the one he represents now.

Driskill, who moved a little over a year ago from his hometown of Doniphan into a home just west of Poplar Bluff in Butler County, said he was disappointed that his new district takes away some of Ripley County, including Doniphan.

"I will have some negotiations about changing some territory that I think the commission will entertain," said Driskill. "I am disappointed about losing the place where I was born and raised. The people in Doniphan are my friends, as well as good constituents."

The commission has indicated it might be willing to make some modifications in the final plan as long as both representatives involved in any switch are agreeable and that it keeps districts reasonably compact and within population guidelines.

Driskill, who maintains his district office in Doniphan, is hoping something can be worked out to put Doniphan back into his district.

In his new alignment, Driskill has part of Ripley County, Butler County west of Poplar Bluff, all of Wayne County, and the larger part of Bollinger County, including Marble Hill. That part of Bollinger County is now represented by Rep. Marilyn Williams, D-Dudley.