| The map is the Los Angeles area divided into districts that are equal in population within one percent of the average district population and as compact as possible. These districts were drawn without the use of political or demographic information and so are fair and nonpartisan. In addition, maximally compact districts form a unique map that cannot be manipulated in any way for political purposes. Thus, with this approach, gerrymandering is impossible and fair voting is assured. Compact districts collect voters who live close together and have similar life styles and interests into the same district, allowing them to choose a like-minded representative. The representative is then able to maintain close contact with constituents after being elected. Compact districts also lower the cost of political campaigns. Maximally compact districts are drawn by minimizing the sum of the lengths of the district boundaries. These computations can be carried out, even on a desktop computer, using data supplied by the Census Bureau. Because it is an optimization process, there is only one maximally compact map, the one with the smallest sum of the boundary lengths. Thus, politicians cannot manipulate it for political advantage. |
