Redistricting 101
Justin Levitt
Today’s conversation
• What?
• When?
• Who?
• Where?
• Why?
• How?
Today’s conversation
• What?
• When?
• Who?
• Where?
• Why?
• How?
What is “redistricting”?
Draw (and re-draw) lines
that determine which voters are
represented by each legislative seat
• Federal
• State
• Local
A brief history
• Districts were often made of towns or counties, or
groups of towns or counties
A brief history
• Districts were often made of towns or counties, or
groups of towns or counties
A little more history
• Districts were often made of towns or counties, or
groups of towns or counties
1 state Senator
10 people
1 state Senator
10 people
1 state Senator
10 people
A little more history
• But the population did not grow equally
1 state Senator
1,000 people
1 state Senator
10,000 people
1 state Senator
100 people
Constitutional mandate to redraw lines
Baker v. Carr, 1962
Districts have to have roughly equal population
And so…
2000 ― Census Day
2001 ― Redistricting
2010 ― Census Day
2011 ― Redistricting
2020 ― Census Day
2021 ― Redistricting
Today’s conversation
• What?
• When?
• Who?
• Where?
• Why?
• How?
Key redistricting dates
April 1, 2010 ― Census Day
January 10, 2011 ― Apportionment to U.S. House
April 1, 2011 ― Redistricting data to states
End of session 2011 ― Most redistricting complete
or early 2012
Today’s conversation
• What?
• When?
• Who?
• Where?
• Why?
• How?
Who draws the lines
In most states, the legislature has primary control
• State legislative districts: 37 states
• Congressional districts: 37 states
(and 7 states with 1 Congressional district)
Other redistricting institutions
State legislative
districts
Congressional
districts
*
*
Primary control in the legislature
Advisory
Backup
Primary control outside legislature Elected officials
Examples of advisory/backup bodies
Maine
Oregon
Texas
Illinois
2/3
Examples of commissions
Colorado
Missouri
70%
Montana
California
9 votes
… and if the process breaks down
2000 cycle judicial action
Someone filed suit
… and if that should fail
2000 cycle judicial action
State leg. Congress*
Courts asked to step in
33
21
Court drew lines itself
11
9
* 7 states had only one congressional district in the 2000 cycle
Today’s conversation
• What?
• When?
• Who?
• Where?
• Why?
• How?
“Where” starts with federal protections
• Equal population
• Race/ethnicity and the Voting Rights Act
Equal population
Baker v. Carr, 1962
• Congress: as equal as possible
• State legislature: up to 10% “deviation,”
if for good reason
“Where” starts with federal protections
• Equal population
• Race/ethnicity and the Voting Rights Act
Minority representation
Cracking
Packing
The Voting Rights Act
Section 2
• Are half of the potential
voters in a concentrated
area minorities?
• Would they generally vote
together?
• Would the rest of the voters
in the area generally choose
different candidates?
“Totality of the circumstances”
•
•
•
•
•
•
rough overall proportionality in the jurisdiction
history of voting-related discrimination
extent of racially polarized voting
extent of discriminatory voting practices or procedures
exclusion of minority members from candidate slating
extent to which minority group members bear the effects of
past discrimination in areas such as education, employment,
and health, which hinder their ability to participate effectively
in the political process
• extent to which minority members have been elected
• extent to which elected officials are unresponsive to the
particularized needs of members of the minority group
Complying with the Voting Rights Act
• Are half of the potential
voters in a concentrated
area minorities?
• Would they generally
vote together?
• Would the rest of the voters
in the area generally choose
different candidates?
• Are the minority voters
otherwise protected, in the
totality of the circumstances?
Do Not Dilute
• Draw an “opportunity district”
• Equal opportunity to elect
representatives of choice
Adjacent populations and the VRA
Chicago suburbs
Latino/Hispanic
African-American
Adjacent populations and the VRA
The Latino population is large and compact – but drawing a compact
Latino opportunity district cuts through the African-American community
Chicago suburbs
Latino/Hispanic
African-American
Adjacent populations and the VRA
The African-American population is also large and compact – but drawing
a compact opportunity district cuts through the Latino community
Chicago suburbs
Latino/Hispanic
African-American
Adjacent populations and the VRA
Creativity reveals a solution for both communities
Chicago suburbs
Latino/Hispanic
African-American
The Voting Rights Act
Section 5
• “Preclearance” for certain
jurisdictions
• Is the new map intended to dilute minority votes?
• Does the new map leave minority voters worse off?
Section 5 objections
• Most review goes through DOJ
• Data reviewed to see if minorities are worse off
• But there are many thousands of submissions
See something? Say something!
Race and ethnicity beyond the VRA
•
Voting Rights Act protects certain voters
•
With other groups of minorities, it is OK to
consider race and ethnicity, among other factors
•
Race and ethnicity just can’t “predominate”
without a really good reason
After federal law, add state limitations
State leg.
Congress
• Contiguity
49
23
• Political boundaries
41
18
• Compactness
36
17
• Communities of interest
22
13
• Partisanship/competition
12
10
• Nesting
14
n/a
After federal law, add state limitations
State leg.
Congress
• Contiguity
49
23
• Political boundaries
41
18
• Compactness
36
17
• Communities of interest
22
13
• Partisanship/competition
12
10
• Nesting
14
n/a
Contiguity
• All parts of the district are adjacent to each other
Not contiguous
Contiguous
After federal law, add state limitations
State leg.
Congress
• Contiguity
49
23
• Political boundaries
41
18
• Compactness
36
17
• Communities of interest
22
13
• Partisanship/competition
12
10
• Nesting
14
n/a
Political boundaries
• Follow county / city / town / ward lines
• Note: may split populations in unexpected ways
After federal law, add state limitations
State leg.
Congress
• Contiguity
49
23
• Political boundaries
41
18
• Compactness
36
17
• Communities of interest
22
13
• Partisanship/competition
12
10
• Nesting
14
n/a
Compactness
• Usually concerns the appearance of the district
(or how close people live to each other)
Less compact
More compact
After federal law, add state limitations
State leg.
Congress
• Contiguity
49
23
• Political boundaries
41
18
• Compactness
36
17
• Communities of interest
22
13
• Partisanship/competition
12
10
• Nesting
14
n/a
Communities of interest
• Definitions vary, but revolve around similar elements
• Kansas: “Social, cultural, racial, ethnic, and economic
interests common to the population of the area, which are
probable subjects of legislation . . . should be considered.
[S]ome communities of interest lend themselves more
readily than others to being embodied in legislative
districts. . .”
Can and should be different in different parts of the state
Communities of interest
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Social interests
Cultural interests
Racial / ethnic interests
Economic / trade interests
Geographic interests
Communication and transportation networks
Media markets
Urban and rural interests
Occupations and lifestyles
After federal law, add state limitations
State leg.
Congress
• Contiguity
49
23
• Political boundaries
41
18
• Compactness
36
17
• Communities of interest
22
13
• Partisanship/competition
12
10
• Nesting
14
n/a
Partisanship and competition
• Of these states,
most prohibit undue partisan favoritism or
targeting particular individuals
• Some affirmatively encourage competition
After federal law, add state limitations
State leg.
Congress
• Contiguity
49
23
• Political boundaries
41
18
• Compactness
36
17
• Communities of interest
22
13
• Partisanship/competition
12
10
• Nesting
14
n/a
Nesting
Senate
Assembly
Not nested
Nested
A quick review
State legislature
Congress
• Who?
Legislature or commission (+ courts)
• Where?
Equal population
Voting Rights Act
Contiguity
Political boundaries
Compactness
Communities of interest
Partisanship
Nesting
Equal population
Voting Rights Act
Today’s conversation
• What?
• When?
• Who?
• Where?
• Why?
• How?
Why does redistricting matter?
If you care about representation,
and you care about political power,
then you care about redistricting
This isn’t about districts that look pretty
Is this a good district?
Is this a good district?
You can’t know
if a district is “good,”
unless you know what
it’s trying to achieve
Is she a good singer?
And pretty shapes are not neutral
Source: Michael McDonald,
Midwest Mapping Project
So why does redistricting matter?
• Politicians choosing their voters
• Eliminating incumbents or challengers
Conflating public, partisan, personal interests
• Barack Obama: strong challenge for Congress in 2000
Barack
Obama’s
house
2002 district
Conflating public, partisan, personal interests
• Lorraine Koppell: strong challenge for state Senate in 2000
2002 district
Lorraine
Koppell’s
house
Conflating public, partisan, personal interests
• Hakeem Jeffries: strong challenge for state Assembly in 2000
Hakeem
Jeffries’s
house
2002 district
Why does redistricting matter?
• Politicians choosing their voters
• Eliminating incumbents or challengers
• Diluting minority votes
• Splitting up communities
Today’s conversation
• What?
• When?
• Who?
• Where?
• Why?
• How?
Principles for redistricting in the public interest
1. Meaningful transparency
2. Meaningful independence
3. Meaningful diversity
4. Meaningful guidance
Redistricting in the public interest
1. Meaningful transparency
2. Meaningful independence
3. Meaningful diversity
4. Meaningful guidance
Meaningful transparency
• Multiple opportunities for meaningful public input
- Before drafts
- After drafts
• Data and tools to facilitate response
• Some explanation from redistricting body
Redistricting in the public interest
1. Meaningful transparency
2. Meaningful independence
3. Meaningful diversity
4. Meaningful guidance
Meaningful independence
• One of the players shouldn’t also be the umpire
• This is not the same as taking politics out of redistricting
• Legislature can still have a role
- Select those who draw the lines
- Review lines afterward
Redistricting in the public interest
1. Meaningful transparency
2. Meaningful independence
3. Meaningful diversity
4. Meaningful guidance
Meaningful diversity
• Those who draw the lines should reflect the state
• Need redistricting body of sufficient size
• Need rules/incentives to choose diverse membership
Redistricting in the public interest
1. Meaningful transparency
2. Meaningful independence
3. Meaningful diversity
4. Meaningful guidance
Meaningful guidance
• Criteria that reflect basic goals
• Enough flexibility to accommodate local exceptions
• Focus on communities of interest as building blocks
• Legislative majority should reflect consistent statewide
majority
Influencing redistricting (short-term)
• Educate your community
• Inform the media
• Identify and map community boundaries
• Attend hearings
• Present alternative maps
Ways to influence the maps
Testimony at hearing:
Where are the boundaries of
the community I serve?
Official map
Press
Nonprofits
Justice
Courts
Input about communities can be simple
Training others
• What?
• When?
• Why?
• Who?
• Where?
• How?
What is the process
in your state?
Where are the points
of access?
Start now and start diverse
Ventura County task force
• Ventura County: farmworkers and the Reagan Library
• Redistricting Task Force
“to increase political representation, voter participation, and civic
engagement of historically underrepresented communities of color
and low-income working families in the Ventura County region
through a program of community organizing, research, and
grassroots advocacy around the 2001 redistricting process.”
Start now and start diverse
Ventura County citizens’ commission
• Involvement from diverse groups
LWV, NAACP, LULAC, labor, faith-based groups
• Focus on local redistricting, focus on communities
• Early outreach to county supervisors
• Task force map was essentially adopted as final plan
Influencing redistricting (long-term)
• Alternative rules
- e.g., how incarcerated populations are counted
• Alternative procedures
- e.g., greater transparency
• Alternative redistricting entities
- e.g., more independent bodies
• Alternative voting systems
- e.g., choice voting
Further information
Justin Levitt
Loyola Law School
justin.levitt@lls.edu
Brennan Center for Justice
Citizen’s Guide to Redistricting
www.brennancenter.org