Stop allowing parties to draw election maps
28 Jan 2013
By Robert McCartney
Both Republicans and Democrats regularly exhibit such greed and dishonesty in manipulating electoral maps that a Columbia University expert who studies the practice likened his work to that of an anthropologist who observes cannibals.
“I have to replace normal human reactions of disgust and revulsion with fascination and curiosity. It’s the only way I can cope,” said Nathaniel Persily, a law professor who’s helped draw election lines in Maryland and other states.
Virginia Republicans are the latest offenders in the sorry saga of politicians seeking to contort the voting process to help their party, and they are going for it in a big way.
First, they shoved a bill through the state Senate that would significantly gerrymander voting jurisdictions for that chamber’s members to benefit the GOP. They did so without hearings in a year when the state constitution suggests that they have no business making such changes.
Some Republican legislators in Virginia have also pushed a separate measure to rejigger how the state’s presidential tally is counted. Under their bill, President Barack Obama would have received only four of Virginia’s 13 electoral votes last year, even though he beat Mitt Romney by nearly 150,000 votes in the popular count.
The GOP efforts in Richmond should appal anyone who cares about democracy and fairness. Governor Bob McDonnell, a Republican, has done the right thing by saying he opposes the Electoral College chicanery, which now seems unlikely to pass. The governor should make clear he’d veto the Senate plan, as well, if it reaches his desk.
Still, let’s be objective. The Democrats do it, too. The GOP has done it more in the current census cycle nationwide, because it controls more state governments. But both parties are guilty.
In addition, when Democrats controlled the Virginia Senate before the 2011 legislative elections, they designed the districts to help themselves. The current GOP bid to redraw those lines arises partly from simple retaliation.
The new GOP bill on the Senate is especially offensive and worrisome because of its timing. The parties are supposed to make major changes in the map only once each decade, a principle enshrined in the state constitution.
The Republicans maintain that it’s okay because they’re just fixing lines that the Democrats drew inappropriately. But that’s a transparent dodge.
The GOP risks setting a precedent that would lead to constant redistricting battles not only in Virginia but also elsewhere around the country.
“It’s very, very rare to have a mid-decade partisan gerrymander,” Persily said. “The question is are we entering an age of perpetual gerrymandering. This won’t stop in Virginia if it becomes the norm.”
The controversy should prompt the public and responsible politicians on both sides to demand adoption of a nonpartisan process for drawing election maps. California and some other states have given the job to bipartisan commissions, with generally positive results.
WP-Bloomberg
By Robert McCartney
Both Republicans and Democrats regularly exhibit such greed and dishonesty in manipulating electoral maps that a Columbia University expert who studies the practice likened his work to that of an anthropologist who observes cannibals.
“I have to replace normal human reactions of disgust and revulsion with fascination and curiosity. It’s the only way I can cope,” said Nathaniel Persily, a law professor who’s helped draw election lines in Maryland and other states.
Virginia Republicans are the latest offenders in the sorry saga of politicians seeking to contort the voting process to help their party, and they are going for it in a big way.
First, they shoved a bill through the state Senate that would significantly gerrymander voting jurisdictions for that chamber’s members to benefit the GOP. They did so without hearings in a year when the state constitution suggests that they have no business making such changes.
Some Republican legislators in Virginia have also pushed a separate measure to rejigger how the state’s presidential tally is counted. Under their bill, President Barack Obama would have received only four of Virginia’s 13 electoral votes last year, even though he beat Mitt Romney by nearly 150,000 votes in the popular count.
The GOP efforts in Richmond should appal anyone who cares about democracy and fairness. Governor Bob McDonnell, a Republican, has done the right thing by saying he opposes the Electoral College chicanery, which now seems unlikely to pass. The governor should make clear he’d veto the Senate plan, as well, if it reaches his desk.
Still, let’s be objective. The Democrats do it, too. The GOP has done it more in the current census cycle nationwide, because it controls more state governments. But both parties are guilty.
In addition, when Democrats controlled the Virginia Senate before the 2011 legislative elections, they designed the districts to help themselves. The current GOP bid to redraw those lines arises partly from simple retaliation.
The new GOP bill on the Senate is especially offensive and worrisome because of its timing. The parties are supposed to make major changes in the map only once each decade, a principle enshrined in the state constitution.
The Republicans maintain that it’s okay because they’re just fixing lines that the Democrats drew inappropriately. But that’s a transparent dodge.
The GOP risks setting a precedent that would lead to constant redistricting battles not only in Virginia but also elsewhere around the country.
“It’s very, very rare to have a mid-decade partisan gerrymander,” Persily said. “The question is are we entering an age of perpetual gerrymandering. This won’t stop in Virginia if it becomes the norm.”
The controversy should prompt the public and responsible politicians on both sides to demand adoption of a nonpartisan process for drawing election maps. California and some other states have given the job to bipartisan commissions, with generally positive results.
WP-Bloomberg
