DAY 11: Congressional Districts

TLW: Define gerrymandering and develop a “gerrymandered” map.

KEY VOCABULARYApportionment, Reapportionment, Census, Congressman at-large,

Gerrymander, Wesberry v. Sanders (1964), Reapportionment Act of 1929

Worst High School Mascots

Hoopstown, Indiana

New Berlin Pretzels

The House of Representatives

• Size and Terms—apportioned (distributed) among the states based on the basis of their populations…each state is guaranteed one seat…435 total seats

REAPPORTIONMENT

– Reapportionment Act of 1929—”permanent “ size of the House is 435; following each census it is determined how many seats each state shall have; President sends the plan for seat allocation to the Congress; if neither house rejects the seat totals within 60 days it becomes effective

Reapportionment—redistribute the seats every 10 years

Raul Grijalva

• House of Representatives

John McCain

• Senate

Jeff Flake

• Senate

DISTRICTS• Districts: 435

congressional districts (7 states have 1 representative so 428 congressional districts divided among 43 states)– Single Member

District means voters choose from candidates running in that particular district

Gerrymandering• Gerrymandering—is the drawing

of districts to the advantage of the political party that controls the State’s legislature– Drawn to concentrate opposition’s

voters so other areas are left for the dominant party

– Spread the opposition so thinly that they have less of a chance to win elections

– Usually divided between Urban and Rural areas

– Wesberry v. Sanders, 1964—Georgia’s congressional districts were divided too unevenly and “…one man’s vote in an election is to be worth as much as another’s…”

Gerrymandering before you know what it is…

• Draw the box below and then divide the box into 3 separate areas. Each area must have 4 circles each. Try and make it so “A” has the most circles in each area.

• We want A to have a political advantage.

B

AAA

A

BB A

A

A

A

A

Gerrymandering before you know what it is…

• Draw the box below and then divide the box into 3 separate areas. Each area must have 4 circles each. Try and make it so “A” has the most circles in each area.

B

AAA

A

BB A

A

A

A

A

Define the terms: Apportionment,

reapportionment, census, Congressman-at-large,

Gerrymander, Wesberry v. Sanders (1964), Reapportionment

Act of 1929

Why do states do it?Who is legally responsible for it?

What are the steps of reapportionment?