This is the best explanation of gerrymandering you will ever see

[Cryptoad]

https://img.washingtonpost.com/wp-apps/imrs.php?src=&w=1484

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wonkblog/wp/2015/03/01/this-is-the-best-explanation-of-gerrymandering-you-will-ever-see/?tid=sm_fb

[hifiguy]

1. Perfect explanation.

[etherealtruth]

2. Sadly, it resembles most of Michigan's districts :-(

[kenfrequed]

17. I was thinking Texas.

But yeah, there are a lot of problems with this.

[StarzGuy]

18. Sadly that's Arizona too

[Cleita]

3. Brilliant.

Thanks.

[Gothmog]

4. This is a great explanation

[Fred Sanders]

5. And the solution is a simple software program available for free....

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wonkblog/wp/2014/06/03/this-computer-programmer-solved-gerrymandering-in-his-spare-time/

"They're right. These programs and algorithms already exist. Brian Olson is a software engineer in Massachusetts who wrote a program to draw "optimally compact" equal-population congressional districts in each state, based on 2010 census data. Olson's algorithm draws districts that respect the boundaries of census blocks, which are the smallest geographic units used by the Census Bureau. This ensures that the district boundaries reflect actual neighborhoods and don't, say, cut an arbitrary line through somebody's house.

You can see for yourself how his boundaries look. Here's a comparison of Pennsylvania's current congressional districts (top) and Olson's algorithmically-drawn ones (bottom)."

[Omaha Steve]

6. K&R!

[BlancheSplanchnik]

7. excellent! saving! n/t

[Ford_Prefect]

8. This is Exactly what we have in North Carolina, along with the lies to justify it.

[icarusxat]

11. And in Utah

[madville]

9. It really hit overdrive after the Voting Rights Act

They gerrymandered 30-40 districts to guarantee an African-American representative, ours here is Corrine Brown's crazy district that follows the St. John's River here in Florida.

It gave them a license to compact a bunch of minorities and urban dwellers into a compact and densely populated district. Then for that one, they create two primarily rural districts that will lean or be outright Republican.

Then they throw their hands in the air and yell "What do you want? We gave them a guaranteed win!".

[FBaggins]

10. I'm afraid that's incorrect

It wasn't "they"... In almost all of those cases, it was Democrats who drew the initial lines.

Republicans later figured out that it helped them substantially and when their turn came to draw a larger proportion of the districts, they continued the practice. In some years, the fighting put Democrats against other Democrats (e.g., Congressional Black Caucus members against the rest of the party in their state - fighting over more, but whiter, Democratic seats vs. a larger CBC but fewer Democrats overall.

[jwirr]

12. I have a milliion questions: Has this ever been taken to court? What we the original purpose of the

gerrymander? How can it be corrected?

Okay not a million but three.

[erronis]

13. My understanding is that it is a "state" issue, not a federal one.

And the states that are already controlled by one party - perhaps because of gerrymandering - are not likely to allow any contests to their district boundaries.

Life ain't fair. But state lines and national ones are mostly arbitrary also - just sayin'.

[jwirr]

14. Thanks - And even if it got into their court system it is probably full of Rs.

[LanternWaste]

15. The 2000 redistricting map in TX was ordered by the Supreme Court to re-draw the map

The 2000 redistricting map in TX was ordered by the Supreme Court to re-draw the map it had recently completed which had diluted the minority impact in may districts by creating three new U.S. House districts designed to elect Republicans, leaving one new district for Hispanics and blacks.

Tom DeLay (and by extension, TRMPAC) had a heavy hand in this, and you may remember this is when about 50 Texas democrats crossed state lines to avoid a quorum (which then, Delay called on Homeland Security to forcibly detain and return them to Austin). This was a major news story in Texas at the time and a lot of us thought (incorrectly) that regardless of the outcome, it would end DeLay's career in Washington.

The court ruled in 2006 that one of the districts violated the Voting Rights Act. (On edit: Texas is a pre-clearance state (redistricting maps must be given clearance by DOJ)... so most other states may not have to undergo the same process with the courts we do)/

As for the original purpose of gerrymandering, I think it was then the same as it is now-- to giove one or another party a distinct electoral advantage. Common myth (and I've never researched this to find out if it's true or not) is that in the mid 19th century, a NY City Councilman/Alderman (is there a diff?) named Gerry Something or Other worked such a fanciful and creative outline for his district so that it appeared to look like the outline of a salamander. A local reporter joined salamander and Gerry to get Gerrymander.

[jwirr]

16. Thank you. I remember the case and love the history.

[tclambert]

19. Compact is not necessarily fair? I did not expect that.

It's easy to define a computer algorithm to draw compact equal population districts. If fair is more complicated than that, then what rules will allow for fair districting?

[czarjak]

20. In my high school government class in 1970...

Virginia Hagood taught, "gerrymandering is cheating."