General Discussion
Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsRedistricting reformers turn to ballot initiatives
Nonpartisan redistricting proponents are turning to midterm election referendums in key states where legislative leaders have signaled no desire to give up their authority on drawing political boundaries.
Voters in four states Michigan, Missouri, Colorado and Utah will weigh in on ballot measures this November that would radically reshape the way congressional or legislative district lines are drawn.
In those states, legislative leaders have the power to draw state legislative and congressional district lines, authority critics say they have used to safeguard incumbents.
The initiatives, placed on the ballot by good-government groups and, in some states, by Democratic activists, would vest the power to draw district boundaries in the hands of independent commissions.
Earlier this year, Ohio voters approved a referendum placed on the primary ballot by state legislators, with the support of Gov. John Kasich (R), that created a commission to draw district lines.
The push to take authority away from state legislatures, coming two years before the next reapportionment process that begins with the 2020 Census, is part of a concerted effort from groups such as Common Cause and the League of Women Voters, as well as progressive groups hoping to regain a spot at the redistricting table, especially in states where Republican-dominated legislatures drew maps in 2012.
http://thehill.com/homenews/state-watch/405989-redistricting-reformers-turn-to-ballot-initiatives
Hermit-The-Prog
(33,328 posts)The modern Republican party would lose most elections if (a) gerrymandering was eliminated, (b) voter suppression was outlawed, and (c) public education funds were not raided to pay for private, ideological schools.
Wounded Bear
(58,648 posts)Ours are pretty rational. But then we do ours with a commission that includes both parties and a judge (who is presumably non-biased).
But I fully support the idea that redistricting should be less partisan everywhere.
Hermit-The-Prog
(33,328 posts)Sounds like you are not currently under a gerrymander-prone system.
Wounded Bear
(58,648 posts)I did the calculator thing, and the present system favors Dems slightly according to their calculations.
But there's no districts that look like serpents or spider webs either. Like the whole country, the higher population density areas tend blue and the rural areas red.