You may go to another page in cross-hatch area at the left. Contents, this page: What is gerrymandering? Why should I care about gerrymandering? What is the evidence of gerrymandering? What are the effects of gerrymandering? How can gerrymandering be stopped? | What is gerrymandering? Gerrymandering is drawing voting districts in such a way as to rig elections, thus denying the citizens their right to a fair vote. It was named after Gov. Elbridge Gerry of Massachusetts, who in 1812 signed into a law a politically motivated redistricting plan in which one district was so convoluted and strung out that it looked like a salamander. Gerry + sala-mander = Gerrymander Why should I care about gerrymandering? Do you care about your civil rights? Do you like having a voice in how you are governed? Do you care who makes the laws and what kind of laws they make? Do you care how high your taxes are? If so, you care about gerrymandering. What is the evidence of gerrymandering? Look at the shapes of the voting districts in your state. Those shapes are carefully designed to elect particular candidates. Because of this manipulation, elections to state legislatures and Congress are 99.9 percent predictable. In the 2002 Congressional elections, 98 percent of House members seeking re-election kept their seats, and more than 82 percent of them won by more than a 20 percent margin. The election was rigged. What are the effects of gerrymandering? Loss of voting power The most important effect of gerrymandering is that the voters lose their most important civil right -- the right to choose their representatives. This basic democratic right is repeatedly stolen by the politicians to ensure their own re-election and to increase their own political power. Low voter turnout When elections are determined in advance by politicians, going to the polls and voting becomes an empty exercise. Voters soon realize that they are not able to elect the representatives they want, so they become discouraged and apathetic. Voters see that they might as well stay home and that is exactly what they do. Political polarization Have you noticed how strident the political rhetoric has become and how bitter the fighting is in our legislative bodies? This is a side effect of gerrymandering. It works this way: When politicians gerrymander the districts so that the winning party in each district is determined in advance, the real campaigning for office shifts to the primary elections. Primaries tend to be controlled by the more radical elements in a party, so the winners of the primary tend to be from the extreme elements. Thus, the people who are finally elected are more extreme politically and less typical of the general population than they would be without gerrymandering. This polarization of the legislative bodies produces the extreme rhetoric and political squabbling we dislike so much. Arrogant, Unresponsive Representatives When politicians are assured of reelection, they stop listening to the people. They become an elite club who vote themselves perquisites: foreign travel with entourage privileges, high salaries, generous healthcare plans and retirement benefits. Their pensions are four times what they would get in the private sector. Our taxes go to make them millionaires. How can gerrymandering be stopped? Gerrymandering can be ended by placing restrictions on the process of redistricting. More than two hundred years of American history show us that as long as redistricting is left to the discretion of politicians they will manipulate voting districts for their own political advantage. Only by regulating the process of drawing district boundaries can fair voting be restored. Return to top and select another page from list in cross-hatch area at far left. |
