Reapportionment
& Redistricting
Constitution
• Senators
– 6 years
– Selected by state legislatures
– 17th Amendment, 1913: Direct election
• Members of House of Representatives
– 2 years
– Directly elected by people
Reapportionment
• When the federal government reallocates seats
among the states after the decennial census
Gains and losses due to 2000
reapportionment
• Gains
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
CA (+1)
AZ (+2)
CO (+1)
FL (+2)
GA (+2)
NV (+1)
TX (+2)
• Losses
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
CT (-1)
NY (-2)
IL (-1)
IN (-1)
MI (-1)
OH (-1)
OK (-1)
PA (-2)
WI (-1)
Redistricting
• When states redraw congressional district
boundaries after decennial census
• Wesberry v. Sanders (1964)
– Each district must have equal population
What criteria should states use in
deciding where to draw
district lines?
Simulation
• Each district must have three people.
• Men and women care about different political outcomes.
Men will vote for men. Women will vote for women. How
many women will be elected in the current plan?
• Try to maximize the number of women elected.
• In addition, flip flop wearers will only vote for flip flop
wearers, and vice versa. How many flip flop wearers will
be elected in the current plan.
• Flip-flop wearers have been the subject of discrimination.
Try to get them as much representation as possible.
Conflicting Values
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Contiguity of boundaries (requirement)
Equal population (requirement)
Compactness
Keeping together communities of interest
Protecting interests of racial minorities
Partisan gerrymandering
Incumbent protection
Maximizing competition
Free-Write
Write a short essay discussing what constitutes good
representation, in your mind. What characteristics of
a representative would make you feel like he or she
should do a good job representing you and your
interests? What behavior should a good representative
engage in? When, if ever, should a representative put
his constituents’ interests aside and think of the
greater good?
You will turn this essay in for participation credit.
Values associated with representation
• Looking like me, having my background
– “Symbolic representation”
• Rep. uses own judgment to act on my behalf
– “Representative-as-delegate”
• Doing exactly what I would do
– “Representative as agent”
• Communication with me