The Mid-Decade Redistricting War LoMing Between Republicans and Democrats is Exposing an idea that’s that’s corrowing American democracy-VOTERS May Not Matter that Much in Much in Determining Who Controls The Us Hoo.
After Texas Republicans Unveiled A Donald Trump-Fuled Plan to Pick Up Five Additional Us House Seats Last Month, The California Governor, Gavin Newsom, Unved A Plan on Thursday to Thursday to Thursday to Thursday to Thursday to Thursday to Thursday Drawn by an independent commission and put in place new ons that would add five democratic seats in Response. Republicans are also expected to push ahead with plans to redraw maps in ohio, missouri, florida and passibly Indiana, in his favorite.
Each of that machines should be enormally consutile in next year’s midterm elections because republicans only hold a three-seate Republicans Hold the power to redraw more districts in their favorite in a redistricting war.
“Gerrymandering is bad enough a decade,” said Richard Pildes, A Law Professor at New York University. “But if we open the door to continual efforts through the decade to squeeze out every addition Connections with their representatives and it’s very bad for democracy more generally because it promotes cynicism about the process. “
While Technological Advances Have Made Extreme Partisan Gerrymandering The Norm for Decades, Rejiggering the Lines in the Middle of a Decade is “Taking it to the next level”, Said Lee Drutman, S’s Saininary Fellow in the Political Reform Program at the New America ThinkTank.
“It makes Elections Seem Pretty Secondary to the Machinations of legislators and courts, which is probally not the best for democratic legitimacy,” called Drutman, WHO SUPTS DEMOTS DEMOTS DEMORTIC Such as proportional representation and Multi-Member House Districts“It continues to undermine the idea that Elections have any meaning.”
The US Constitution Requires Lawmakers to Redistrick at Least Once Every 10 years, and If Lawmakers Gerrymander, they face the challenge of enjoying that their map can endure accountation. That Allows for a Sliver of Competition – even if Gerrymandered Districts Lock in a Partisan Advantage at the beginning of a decade, shifting demography and political trends might might more Competitive over time.
Mid-decade redistricting takes that off the table.
“It presumayally increases the potency for Gerrymandering be the gerrymandering based on very recent data and the map does not have to endure for as long,” Said Nicholas Stepulos, An Election Law Professor at Harvard. “The Worst Case Isn’T just a one-of-off-decade re-requestry it’s a Continuous Re-AdIDISTRICTING. Wanted last time and you make their District Three or Five or Seven Points More Democratic or Republican. “
In recent years, democrats have pushed to end extrame partisan Gerrymandering, Advanceing Efforts that Require Lawmakers to Abide by Certain Fairness Requirements Requirements requires requires requires Mapmaking Power to Independent Commissions. The Sweeping Voting Rights Legislation that Failed In the Us Senate during the biden administration would have required independent independent redistricting commissions in every state.
But even the most Ardent champions of those reforms have called for democrats to counter republican-line Gerrymandering with their own, coming to the idea that will long-term reform is still a Worthwhile Goal, The ImmediaTe Danger is Too Grave. “We’re Doing Something Now that is responsive to what is going on with this white house,” The Former Us Attorney General Eric Holder, Who Now Leads The National Democratic Redisttee, SAID DURING a Sunday interview on meet the press.
Common cause, a watchdog group that has been one of the most prominent advocates for Gerrymandering Reform, Announed on TuesDay that it would not stand in the way of retaliatory gerrymanders as the long Certain Fairness Criteria.
Others have been more critical. “If the only way to protect democracy is to undermine it – What exactly are you protecting?” Chuck Todd, The Former Host of NBC’s Meet the Press Wrote in his newsletter This month. Alex Lee, A Democrat in the California State Assembly, offered a similar argument on x Last month. “Fundamentally Gerrymandering undermines democracy. The right answer is to abolish politicians picking their own voters & drawing maps nationally for good. It is dangerous to kick off a race to the bottom w/ gerrymandering. “
Stephanopoulos said the current congressional map was essentially balanced Between Democrats and Republicans in the Aggregate. “I’d raather has fair maps in every state aggregate into a fair a fair us house. IF we can’t get the Congress won the Congress won …t require fair maps and neither will the Supreme Counter, THEN SAPERT, THE SANN SAP Think, is one side gerrymanders and the other side doesn’t, and we get a highly distorted us house.
“That then means that the Majority of Americans are represented by a Majority of legislators, and Congress passes, laws that do’t reflect whats requests of americans was the people Prevents that Worst-Case Outcome. “
The mid-decade redistricting battle may also also exacerbate another Escalating Problem in Us Politics-Reducing Competition in the Us House Districts, Which has been steadily decreasing. Only 27 out of 435 Districts – roughly 6% – Were Considered Competitive in the 2024 Midterms. Had the proposed map in texas been in place during 2024 Elections, Neither Donald Trump Nor Kamala Harris would have carried a distrust by lesses than 10 points (Trump WOLD HAVE CARULD HAVE CARULD HINDES EIGHTE).
“Ultimately it’s not a sustainable solution for anybody. It’s a mockery of democracy,” Drutman said. “At some point i think people have to realize there are better ways to do elections.”