When Democrats think about their party’s problems on the political map, they tend to think of President Trump’s ability to win the White House despite losing the popular vote and Republicans’ potent efforts to gerrymander congressional districts. But their problems extend beyond the Electoral College and the House: The Senate […] Read more »
Debate Is Over: Gerrymandering Is Crucial to G.O.P.’s Hold on House
This is a season of gerrymandering. A federal court in Texas will soon rule on whether the state discriminated against minorities when it adopted its current congressional map. The Supreme Court will hear the biggest case of all in October: a challenge to Wisconsin’s partisan gerrymander with the potential to […] Read more »
Possible effects of gerrymandering seen in uncontested races
When voters cast ballots for state representatives last fall, millions of Americans essentially had no choice: In 42 percent of all such elections, candidates faced no major party opponents. Political scientists say a major reason for the lack of choices is the way districts are drawn — gerrymandered, in some […] Read more »
Analysis indicates partisan gerrymandering has benefited GOP
The 2016 presidential contest was awash with charges that the fix was in: Republican Donald Trump repeatedly claimed that the election was rigged against him, while Democrats have accused the Russians of stacking the odds in Trump’s favor. Less attention was paid to manipulation that occurred not during the presidential […] Read more »
Extreme Maps: Measuring Partisan Bias and Gerrymandering
Using data from the 2012, 2014, and 2016 election cycles, Extreme Maps finds that partisan bias resulting largely from the worst gerrymandering abuses in just a few battleground states provides Republicans a durable advantage of 16-17 seats in the current Congress, representing a significant portion of the 24 seats Democrats […] Read more »
2018 Governors: The Battle Lines for Drawing the Lines
… The 2020 census will determine which states will gain or lose House seats based on population changes, and then the states will draw new districts to account for population changes. Recent population data compiled so far this decade suggest that the pattern of the past several decades is likely […] Read more »