The Redistricting Game

1392 Words3 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: The Context of Texas Politics chapter 1 quizlet

Article 1, Section 2, Clause 3 of the U.S. Constitution states that, “Representatives…shall be apportioned among several states...according to their respective Numbers.” Apportionment is the mathematical process of dividing and allocating the four hundred and thirty five seats in the House of Representatives among the fifty states based on the population figures collected by the Census Bureau. This process, according to the Constitution, must be conducted “within every subsequent Term of ten Years.” Each of the fifty states is guaranteed one representative. The number of House of Representatives from each state fluctuates every ten years due to population deviation.

Redistricting is the legislative political process of redrawing the geographic boundaries of congressional district based on population following the decennial census. Each state is obligated to adhere to certain Supreme Court requirements regarding redistricting. Respective districts within a state should ensure population equality, contiguity, compactness and no discrimination against minority. Districts can be drawn to protect incumbents. The process of deliberately modifying districts in order to increase the partisan advantage of a particular political party is called gerrymandering.

For Mission One of The Redistricting Game, I was the State of Jefferson’s redistricting consultant and chose to work for the Democratic Party. My mission was to establish population equality by making sure that each district in the state has virtually the same number of people between 640,000 to 650,000. The virtual State of Jefferson has four district Representatives. Rep. Tyree Hugger, Rep. Emma Powerment, Rep. Manny Pulative, and Rep. Celia Coen-Valley representing Districts 1...

... middle of paper ...

...n over bipartisan commission or even worse, by the state legislature. I think bipartisan commission could ultimately result in bipartisan gerrymandering. On the other hand, the party in control of the state legislature often draws district lines in favor of its own political interest. Independent commission guarantees fair non-political congressional districts plans which cannot be vetoed by the governor who also acts in favor of his political party’s interest. I believe democracy in a state is attainable when the people legitimately vote for the representatives they want but not vice versa.

Works Cited

Dye, Thomas R., L. Tucker Gibson, Jr., and Clay Robison. Politics in America. Ninth ed. Vol. 2. New York, NY: Longman, 2011. 337. Print.

Gaskins, Keesha. "Texas Redistricting 101." Brennan Center for Justice. NYU School of Law, 12 Jan. 2012. Web. 9 Mar. 2012.

Show More
Related

  • The Myth Of A Polarized America Chapter 1 Summary

    2206 Words  | 5 Pages

    The book Culture Wars? The Myth of a Polarized America by Morris P. Fiorina, Samuel J. Abrams, and Jeremy C. Pope is a persuasive text regarding America and its division on political topics.

    Read More

  • Ames And Hedges

    1032 Words  | 3 Pages

    Both works provide valuable insight into the political atmosphere of American society, but vary greatly in their intended message, usage of persuasive method, projected audience, and choice of tone. One can see resemblance, however, in the fact that the authors of both articles strive to spark a reaction in their readers and encourage change. In that regard, while Hedges’

    Read More

  • Structure of American and California Governments

    9636 Words  | 20 Pages

    The legislative branch of America helps create the laws or legislation. Ideally, it works to create a society that is safe for all members. The State of California like the federal government has a bicameral legislature, in other words, composed of two chambers. The upper chamber is called the senate, while the lower is called the assembly. A unique process for the state level is that it allows for the initiative. This process circumvents the state congress and can create laws without their aide. In the state of California, every ten years, following a US census, which collects demographic information, state legislators draw redistricting plans for itself, California seats in the US House of Representatives, and the State Board of Equalization. There have been attempts to create a “non-partisan” redistricting commission, but this has been turned down by voters numerous times. Proposition 14, 39, 118, and 119 were all turned down by voters to create a non-partisan districting commission. Every decade a large portion of the state congress’s energy is spent on redistricting. In fact, two of the last four censuses, Supreme Court has had to step in to break a deadlock. In 1970, Ronald Reagan, a Republican, vetoed all together the Democratic redistricting plan. The Supreme Court had to step in and created its own plans for California to follow. Then in 1981, Democrats proposed redistricting as well as congressional delegation redistricting. The Republicans stopped this by adding referendums to the state ballot. Because it was too close to elections though, Supreme Court overturned these referendums in 1982. In 1984, they officially passed the new redistricting plan which was very similar to the original plans.

    Read More

  • Electoral College Argumentative Essay

    1378 Words  | 3 Pages

    Every ten years after a census, politicians redraw the district boundaries that determine the house and state legislature. The problem with this system is that the same politicians who redraw the district boundaries are the ones who are being elected by the

    Read More

  • The Detrimental Practice of Gerrymandering

    988 Words  | 2 Pages

    political districts - he invented it!” Daily News. New York Daily News. 14 March 2014.

    Read More

  • Driver's License for the Unodumented

    979 Words  | 2 Pages

    " Journal of Law & Politics 24.4 (2008): 435-473. America: History and Life, with Full Text. Web. The Web. The Web.

    Read More

  • New National Holiday: Implementing Election Day as a Holiday

    1072 Words  | 3 Pages

    Ken Kollman, The American Political System, (New York: W.W. Norton and Company, 2012), 25, 322-323, 330, 449.

    Read More

  • Single-Member Districts

    764 Words  | 2 Pages

    The single-member district election system is the most common and best-known electoral system currently in use in America. It is used to elect the U.S. House Representatives, as well as many state and local legislatures. Under single member district systems, an area is divided into a number of geographically defined voting districts, each represented by a single elected official. Voters can only vote for their district’s representative, with the individual receiving the most votes winning election. This method of electing representatives is better than any alternative solution in various ways. Four compelling reasons to support the single-member district election system include the fact that single-member districts give each voter a single, easily identifiable district member; the way single-member district voting helps protect against overreaching party influence; that single-member districts ensure geographic representation; and finally, that single-member districts are the best way to maximize representatives’ accountability.

    Read More

  • Culture Wars: The Struggle to Define America by James Davison Hunter

    1303 Words  | 3 Pages

    Bowman, Carl Desportes. "The Myth of a Non-Polarized America." 2011. The Hedgehog: Critical Reflection on Contemporary Culture. 1 March 2014.

    Read More

  • The Political Division of the United States

    1497 Words  | 3 Pages

    There is much debate in the United States whether or not there is polarization between our two dominate political parties. Presidential election results have shown that there is a division between the states; a battle between the Democratic blue states and the Republican red states. And what is striking is that the “colors” of these states do not change. Red stays red, and blue stays blue. Chapter 11 of Fault Lines gives differing views of polarization. James Wilson, a political science professor at Pepperdine University in California, suggests that polarization is indeed relevant in modern society and that it will eventually cause the downfall of America. On the contrast, Morris Fiorina, a political science professor at Stanford University, argues that polarization is nothing but a myth, something that Americans should not be concerned with. John Judis, a senior editor at The New Republic, gives insight on a driving force of polarization; the Tea Party Movement. Through this paper I will highlight the chief factors given by Wilson and Judis which contribute to polarization in the United States, and will consider what factors Fiorina may agree with.

    Read More

  • America's Democracy

    1078 Words  | 3 Pages

    New York, NY: McGraw-Hill, 2004. Romance, Joseph. Political Science 6 class lectures. Drew University, Summer 2004.

    Read More

  • Indiana's Bicameral System

    1444 Words  | 3 Pages

    With fifty states making up the United States, most follow a similar government set up as the federal government. With the exception of Nebraska, each state is made up of a bicameral legislature. In a bicameral legislature, there are two separate houses, one being the upper house and one being the lower. The Indiana General Assembly is the state legislature of Indiana. Being bicameral, the Indiana General Assembly consists of the upper house, the Indiana Senate, and the lower house, the Indiana House of Representatives. While Indiana follows a very similar bicameral system as the federal government, Nebraska became the only state with a unicameral state legislature in 1934, meeting for the first time in 1937 (NCSL 2016). In this paper I will

    Read More

  • How A Bill Becomes A Law

    1168 Words  | 3 Pages

    Light, Paul C., and Christine L. Nemacheck. "Chapter 7 Congress." Government by the People, Brief 2012 Election Edition, Books a La Carte New Mypoliscilab With Etext Access Card Package. By David B. Magleby. 2012 Election Edition ed. N.p.: Pearson College Div, 2013. N. pag. Print.

    Read More

  • Essay On Representative Democracy

    722 Words  | 2 Pages

    First, states can create independent commissions. These commissions would be comprised of appointed independent citizens who would informatively draw congressional lines based on population. Second, state legislatures can use computer-based models and algorithms that would produce results (Hebert and Jenkins 556). However, both of these methods could potentially be exposed to corruption and bias, and they can also cause elections to be uncompetitive which voters find objectionable. This may also lead to slightly skewed representation, but these methods diminish the problem to an

    Read More

  • Constitutional Government Controls The Exercise Of Political Power

    455 Words  | 1 Pages

    Meanwhile, the lower house the house of representatives would have different numbers of representatives from each state determined by population.

    Read More

More about The Redistricting Game

Open Document