Redistricting

OK, So What’s The Problem?

If you missed last week’s installment, take a look, as it summarizes how redistricting in Virginia works.  If you’re too busy, the basics on your author:  In 2007 I was asked to run a new non-profit effort to reform Virginia’s redistricting system. A group of moderate business leaders had decided to raise funds for the effort. For the next 7 months, I shuttled between my Arlington home and Richmond as Executive Director of the Virginia Redistricting Coalition. I’ll use this series to pose a few basic questions about redistricting reform and explore the philosophical and practical implications of such an effort. As a warning up front, I am not a lawyer. So while I am fairly well-versed in the relevant concepts, don’t take my word for gospel on the legal precepts. I’m also going to assume you’re familiar with the basics: gerrymandering, the Civil Rights Act of 64, reapportionment generally, and the current state of the ‘science’ of partisan redistricting.

Partisan redistricting – is it really a problem? First principles – what is the problem with partisan redistricting? Per Baker v. Carr and later Gray v. Sanders, modern partisan redistricting efforts do not endanger the effective power of an individual’s vote, nor do they dilute the ability of a constitutionally protected class to achieve representation (post-Voting Rights Act of 65). So we must at least consider whether or not drawing district lines for partisan gain is either constitutionally (or morally) acceptable. The constitutional question remains unsettled – a series of cases has yet to define a standard for determining if a partisan gerrymander is an equal protection violation. (See Vieth v. Jubelirer & Davis v. Bandemer – I’m not qualified to belabor the details.) Without settled case law, this leaves us to ask if there is a public interest in removing partisan influence from redistricting. [Read more…] about Redistricting Reform Part 2

Redistricting Reform Part 1:

Where We Begin

Before we begin, a word about me: I’m a political professional. I run my own company, and my career has been split between political campaigns and advocacy organizations. Unlike most people writing on this blog, I’m not a lawyer or a law student or a professor. And while I have a pretty strong understanding of this issue, my review of relevant case law may seem less than expert – my apologies.

So why would I be writing about redistricting reform? Simple: A few years ago, I was approached to manage an effort to reform Virginia’s redistricting process. It is that experience, as Executive Director of the Virginia Redistricting Coalition, which gives me my particular knowledge on the topic. As someone who had never previously worked on the issue, I was now to run an organization, develop legislation, devise a legislative strategy, and build a coalition around this topic. Now, I’d done all of these things before, to some extent, in other positions. Having previously cofounded and run a non-profit advocacy organization, I knew what I was getting into.

But to get all that done in 6 months, well that’s a bit more difficult. So I bring to this discussion the benefit of a crash course in redistricting, reform, and Virginia’s brand of the process. This blog series will be about what I learned while I ran this organization and advocated for redistricting reform.

Welcome to the Wild West

Let’s begin where I started when I got the job: The Constitution of Virginia, Article II, Section 6 (emphasis added):

Members of the House of Representatives of the United States and members of the Senate and of the House of Delegates of the General Assembly shall be elected from electoral districts established by the General Assembly. Every electoral district shall be composed of contiguous and compact territory and shall be so constituted as to give, as nearly as is practicable, representation in proportion to the population of the district. The General Assembly shall reapportion the Commonwealth into electoral districts in accordance with this section in the year 2011 and every ten years thereafter.

Any such decennial reapportionment law shall take effect immediately and not be subject to the limitations contained in Article IV, Section 13, of this Constitution.

(Note: Article IV, Section 13 deals with enactment dates of new laws)

The key words are in bold. In Virginia, reapportionment is handled as if it were any other law. Let that one sink in: Any other law. [Read more…] about Redistricting Reform in Virginia