In a representative democracy, the concept of gerrymandering is confusing. Voters should be able to choose their representatives, not the other way around.

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Gerrymandering
How did it happen, where are we now,
where is it headed?
A Guide to Looking at the Political
Landscape of 2040

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So what is gerrymandering?
 Gerrymandering is the drawing of political boundary lines to
give your chosen party an unfair advantage over another.
 It is a tough concept to explain until you see it first hand.
 Let’s illustrate this concept…

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Visual
Image from: washingtonpost.com/wonkblong

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So what’s the issue?
 In the last slide, we see why gerrymandering IS such an issue
and we continue to live with the consequences.
 So why don’t we catch it more often? Good question! The
answer: it is a very hard thing to prove.
 Both parties are guilty of it at one point or another.
 In a representative democracy, the concept of gerrymandering
is confusing. Voters should be able to choose their
representatives, not the other way around.

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History…
 The history of gerrymandering is as
old as the United States. Even our
first representatives tried to draw
district lines in a way that gave them
an advantage.
 But the most famous first case of
gerrymandering is from the case of
the man from which the term
originates: Elbridge Gerry. He redrew
Massachusetts district lines to benefit
his political party in 1812. The
redrawing resembled that of a
“salamander”. Pairing this with
“Gerry”, the term was born.

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Building…
 The Appointment Act of 1842 set up a ratio of one member of
Congress for every 70,680 residents which in turn, decreased
the amount of House of Representatives seats from 240 to 223.
Most importantly in this bill, this was the start of Congressional
districts.
 While adding more states into the Union, each party began to
seek control over the new state.

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Racism
 Despite the passing of the Voting Rights Act
in 1965, many southern states engaged in
gerrymandering that put blacks and other
minorities at a substantial disadvantage.
 The concept of minority-majority districts,
passed by the Supreme Court as a remedy
for racial gerrymandering, have allowed
political parties to capitalize on vulnerable
districts.

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Where are we now?
 Multiple cases have been levied against states for
gerrymandering.
 The public has become more and more aware and informed
about this issue.
 A lot of factors play into gerrymandering—partisan politics,
money, coercion, etc.
 Current cases include
 Gill v. Whitford – a case in Wisconsin
 Benisek v. Lamone – a case in Maryland
 League of Women Voters v. Rucho – a case in North Carolina

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Is there a better future ahead?
 We can make realistic changes now to make life better in 2040
for voters.
 There are two main issues with the method we use for re-
districting now:
 1. The technology we have allows us to draw lines with
“micro precision”.
 2. Current re-drawing disfavors minorities.
This also leads to only political elite running for office.

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The Year 2040
What steps can we take?
 Good Scenario
 This is a possible solution in 2040—if voting
rights advocates push for reform.
 There are a couple of ways we can improve the
serious issue of gerrymandering.
 1. Have both parties agree to a new district
map.
 2. Have the lines drawn by an independent
commission free of bias.
 3. Make sure demographics are represented
evenly.

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The Year 2040
What steps can we take?
 Bad scenario
 If the people continue to remain silent on this issue, our voting
map will only become more skewed.
 Gerrymandering will lead to more income inequality, racial
divide, and general dissatisfaction with political representation.
Every state could easily
look like North Carolina
in 2040

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The Year 2040
Realistically
 With little input from the Supreme Court, it seems the problem of
gerrymandering will remain relatively unchanged unless the
citizens seek to fix it.
 There are a couple of things WE can do right now to help…
1. Call your congress people’s office and tell them to
vote for bills that prevent this.
2. Other countries have had this issue. Let’s look to
them.

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References
 https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2015/03/01/thi
s-is-the-best-explanation-of-gerrymandering-you-will-ever-
see/?noredirect=on&utm_term=.aff5e00aa841
 https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2012/09/the-
twisted-history-of-gerrymandering-in-american-
politics/262369/#slide2
 https://www.brennancenter.org/analysis/ongoing-partisan-
gerrymandering-cases