At first glance, the bitter debate over the Texas Senate’s redistricting map — passed out of that chamber Tuesday — looks like yet another smack-down between Republicans and Democrats.

The main point of contention in this debate was Senate District 22, which encompasses Waco and McLennan County.

At issue is a sliver of land in the proposed map that extends from the current district into a blue-collar section of south-central Tarrant County.

It’s that finger of land that should cause local residents to ignore any hint of a partisan battle and to realize that this map has much more significant — and politically ominous — implications for Waco.

Fundamentally, this shift to the north weakens Waco’s political influence in the Legislature for at least a decade.

After years of contributing powerhouse lawmakers to the Texas Senate and having great say in statewide matters, Waco will have to work harder if it wants its voice to be heard in the Texas Legislature.

Everything from laws protecting Lake Waco to Baylor University’s inclusion in the Big 12 can be traced, in part, to political influence that has always emanated from Waco.

That could soon disappear under this map, which allows the population center in our Senate district to shift decisively into the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex which has its own set of interests.

One key example of this occurred a year ago when state transportation officials decided on funding Interstate 35 improvements through Waco, to the objection of officials in Tarrant County.

McLennan and neighboring counties currently make up 48 percent of District 22. Under this map, that percentage drops to 37 percent of the district.

Admirably, our new senator, Brian Birdwell, who hails from the northern part of our district, initially opposed this proposal and urged leaving our district alone. Ultimately, he joined the 29 senators who voted in favor of the map with only two voting against it.

It still must be approved by the House and signed into law by Gov. Rick Perry — which means the map is a virtual certainty. Yet it faces some challenges. Sen. Wendy Davis, D-Fort Worth, part of whose district is being shifted into our district, said a legal battle in this case is a virtual certainty because of the implications this has for minority voting patterns.

That may be our best hope to retain some of the influence that we have wielded politically.

This isn’t a Republican vs. Democratic issue; it’s a Waco issue.