AUGUSTA, Maine — Hoping to avoid a bitter floor fight on Tuesday, House and Senate leadership on Monday offered two alternative compromise maps on congressional redistricting in hopes of coaxing Democrats to offer their support.

Senate President Kevin Raye and House Speaker Robert Nutting announced late Monday morning that two maps that were discussed during the redistricting process were back on the table.

The first is the Republicans’ “Kennebec County map,” which moves towns just within that county and shifts Waterville from the 2nd District to the 1st.

The second alternative focuses on Androscoggin County and shifts Lewiston-Auburn from the 2nd to the 1st District.

Democrats had opposed those options as recently as a month ago, indicating that each plan was designed to move more populated Democratic towns into the 1st District while replacing them in the 2nd District with more Republican-leaning towns.

Republican Sen. Debra Plowman of Hampden, a member of the redistricting commission, urged the minority party to reconsider.

“We offer these in a spirit of compromise,” she said, although Plowman added that if the Democrats don’t go along with one of the alternatives, the Republicans would vote on their original plan during Tuesday’s special legislative session.

Democrats were considering their options Monday afternoon but were willing to work with the Republicans on a compromise.

Congressional redistricting is mandated for states every 10 years to reflect updated census data.

Maine has two Congressional districts: the 1st District, made up largely of the populated southern Maine counties around Portland, is currently represented by Democrat Chellie Pingree. The 2nd District, which encompasses the balance of rural Maine, is represented by Mike Michaud, also a Democrat.

A bipartisan commission has been working since July to come up with a plan to redraw the political lines and the debate has taken on a sharp partisan tone at times.

The initial GOP plan, dubbed the “Western Maine plan,” represents a much more dramatic shift. It moves Lincoln, Knox and Sagadahoc counties from the 1st District to the 2nd District and moves Oxford and Androscoggin counties from the 2nd to the 1st.

Kennebec County would be contained entirely in the 2nd District and Franklin County would be divided between the two.

Among other things, that GOP plan would shift one-quarter of the state’s voters from one district to the other and would move more than 8,000 Republicans into the 2nd District. Some Democrats have called the plan the “Kevin Raye plan” because the Perry lawmaker is rumored to be challenging 2nd District Rep. Mike Michaud in 2012.

Last Friday, Republicans indicated that they planned to vote on that plan Tuesday and planned to do so with a simple majority.

Around the same time the Republicans released their alternatives, moderate House Democrats called on the public to convince the GOP not to ram through their radical map with a party-line vote.

Rep. Anne Graham, D-North Yarmouth, was one of the co-sponsors of a constitutional

amendment to change the schedule for congressional redistricting and to require two-thirds of the Legislature to endorse any new congressional district map.

That amendment was sponsored by Rep. Dennis Keschl, R-Belgrade, and championed by Republican lawmakers. Graham said the Republicans can’t support an amendment requiring two-thirds support and then pass their plan with a simple majority.

Because it is a constitutional amendment, that bill must be approved by Maine voters and a question will be on the November ballot, about a month and a half too late.

Already, at least one group has indicated a possible referendum challenge should the Republicans pass their congressional reapportionment plan.

Ed Schlick, executive director of the Maine People’s Voting Coalition, said over the weekend that his group would help lead a people’s veto effort if need be.

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