Redistricting 101Justin 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

10 people

10 people

A little more history• Districts were often made of towns or

counties, or groups of towns or counties

1 state Senator

1 state Senator

1 state Senator10 people

10,000 people

1 state Senator

1 state Senator

1 state Senator1,000 people

A little more history• But the population did not grow equally

100 people

Constitutional mandate to redraw lines

Districts have to have roughly equal population

Baker v. Carr, 1962

2000 ―2001 ―

2010 ―2011 ―

2020 ―2021 ―

And so…Census DayRedistricting

Census DayRedistricting

Census DayRedistricting

Today’s conversation

• What?

• When?

• Who?

• Where?

• Why?

• How?

Key redistricting dates

April 1, 2010 ―

January 10, 2011 ―

April 1, 2011 ―

End of session 2011 ―

or early 2012

Census Day

Apportionment to U.S. House

Redistricting data to states

Most redistricting complete

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

AdvisoryPrimary control in the legislature

Primary control outside legislature

Elected officials

Backup

State legislative districts

Congressional

districts

*

*

Examples of advisory/backup bodies

Maine

Oregon

2/3

Texas

Illinois

Examples of commissions

Colorado

Missouri

70%

Montana

California 9

votes

… and if the process breaks down2000 cycle judicial

action

Someone filed suit

State leg. Congress*

Courts asked to step in 33 21

Court drew lines itself 11 9

… and if that should fail

* 7 states had only one congressional district in the 2000 cycle

2000 cycle judicial action

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

• Congress: as equal as possible

• State legislature: up to 10% “deviation,”if for good reason

Baker v. Carr, 1962

“Where” starts with federal protections

• Equal population

• Race/ethnicity and the Voting Rights Act

Minority representation

Cracking

Packing

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?

Section 2

“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

• Draw an “opportunity district”

• Equal opportunity to elect representatives of choice

Complying with the Voting Rights Act

Do Not Dilute

• Are half of the potentialvoters 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?

Adjacent populations and the VRA

Latino/HispanicAfrican-American

Chicago suburbs

Adjacent populations and the VRA

Latino/HispanicAfrican-American

Chicago suburbs

The Latino population is large and compact – but drawing a compact Latino opportunity district cuts through the African-American community

Adjacent populations and the VRA

Latino/HispanicAfrican-American

Chicago suburbs

The African-American population is also large and compact – but drawing a compact opportunity district cuts through the Latino community

Adjacent populations and the VRA

Latino/HispanicAfrican-American

Chicago suburbs

Creativity reveals a solution for both communities

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

• Contiguity

• Political boundaries

• Compactness

• Communities of interest

• Partisanship/competition

• Nesting

State leg.Congress

49 23

41 18

36 17

22 13

12 10

14 n/a

After federal law, add state limitations

• Contiguity

• Political boundaries

• Compactness

• Communities of interest

• Partisanship/competition

• Nesting

State leg.Congress

49 23

41 18

36 17

22 13

12 10

14 n/a

Contiguity

• All parts of the district are adjacent to each other

Not contiguous

Contiguous

After federal law, add state limitations

• Contiguity

• Political boundaries

• Compactness

• Communities of interest

• Partisanship/competition

• Nesting

State leg.Congress

49 23

41 18

36 17

22 13

12 10

14 n/a

Political boundaries

• Follow county / city / town / ward lines

• Note: may split populations in unexpected ways

After federal law, add state limitations

• Contiguity

• Political boundaries

• Compactness

• Communities of interest

• Partisanship/competition

• Nesting

State leg.Congress

49 23

41 18

36 17

22 13

12 10

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

• Contiguity

• Political boundaries

• Compactness

• Communities of interest

• Partisanship/competition

• Nesting

State leg.Congress

49 23

41 18

36 17

22 13

12 10

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

• Contiguity

• Political boundaries

• Compactness

• Communities of interest

• Partisanship/competition

• Nesting

State leg.Congress

49 23

41 18

36 17

22 13

12 10

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

• Contiguity

• Political boundaries

• Compactness

• Communities of interest

• Partisanship/competition

• Nesting

State leg.Congress

49 23

41 18

36 17

22 13

12 10

14 n/a

NestingSenateAssembly

Not nested

Nested

State legislature Congress

•Who? Legislature or commission (+ courts)

•Where? Equal population Equal populationVoting Rights Act Voting Rights

ActContiguityPolitical boundariesCompactnessCommunities of interestPartisanshipNesting

A quick review

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

should

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

BarackObama

’shouse

• Barack Obama: strong challenge for Congress in 2000

2002 district

Conflating public, partisan, personal interests

Lorraine

Koppell’s

house

• Lorraine Koppell: strong challenge for state Senate in 2000

2002 district

Conflating public, partisan, personal interests

Hakeem

Jeffries’s

house

• Hakeem Jeffries: strong challenge for state Assembly in 2000

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

1. Meaningful

transparency

2. Meaningful

independence

3. Meaningful

diversity

4. Meaningful

guidance

Redistricting in the public interest

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

1. Meaningful

transparency

2. Meaningful

independence

3. Meaningful

diversity

4. Meaningful

guidance

Redistricting in the public interest

Meaningful diversity

• Those who draw the lines should reflect the state

• Need redistricting body of sufficient size

• Need rules/incentives to choose diverse membership

1. Meaningful

transparency

2. Meaningful

independence

3. Meaningful

diversity

4. Meaningful

guidance

Redistricting in the public interest

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

Official map

Press

Courts

Testimony at hearing:

Where are the boundaries of the community I serve?

Justice

Nonprofits

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.”

Ventura County citizens’ commission

• Involvement from diverse groupsLWV, NAACP, LULAC, labor, faith-based groups

• Focus on local redistricting, focus on communities

• Early outreach to county supervisors

Start now and start diverse

• 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

Justin Levitt

Loyola Law Schooljustin.levitt@lls.edu

Brennan Center for JusticeCitizen’s Guide to Redistrictingwww.brennancenter.org

Further information