What is gerrymandering and how does it affect the political process?

Gerrymandering is the practice of setting boundaries of electoral districts to favor specific political interests within legislative bodies, often resulting in districts with convoluted, winding boundaries rather than compact areas.

What did the Supreme Court rule in rucho V Common Cause?

In the 5–4 majority opinion, the Court ruled that “partisan gerrymandering claims present political questions beyond the reach of the federal courts”, vacating and remanding the lower courts’ decisions with instructions to dismiss for lack of jurisdiction.

Which Supreme Court case outlawed racial gerrymandering?

Johnson, 515 U.S. 900 (1995), was a United States Supreme Court case concerning “affirmative gerrymandering/racial gerrymandering”, where racial minority-majority electoral districts are created during redistricting to increase minority Congressional representation.

Why do politicians use gerrymandering?

The primary goals of gerrymandering are to maximize the effect of supporters’ votes and to minimize the effect of opponents’ votes. A partisan gerrymander’s main purpose is to influence not only the districting statute but the entire corpus of legislative decisions enacted in its path.

Is gerrymandering an issue for judges?

But Republican legislators in North Carolina said gerrymandering is an issue for the political branches, not for judges. “The time has come for this court to make clear that the Constitution does not provide courts with the tools or the responsibility to say how much partisan motivation is too much,” they said in their court filings.

What can Congress do to stop gerrymandering?

Federal reform can help counter gerrymandering — but Congress needs to act soon. The For the People Act, a landmark piece of federal democracy reform legislation that has already passed the House, represents a major step toward curbing political gamesmanship in map drawing.

What does the Supreme Court’s ruling on gerrymandering mean for minority voters?

Under the Voting Rights Act, districting maps cannot be drawn so that they discriminate against voters based on race. The high court’s ruling does not change that, but minority advocates said they feared that by declining to block partisan gerrymandering, the Supreme Court handed lawmakers a roadmap to legally discriminate against non-white voters.

Where are the worst gerrymanders in the US?

Michigan, North Carolina, and Pennsylvania alone — the three states with the worst gerrymanders in the last redistricting cycle — accounted for 7 to 10 extra Republican seats in the House. On the state level, gerrymandering has also led to significant partisan bias in maps.