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What’s New
A bi-partisan bill, spearheaded by Representative John Tanner (TN), has been introduced to take the partisanship and backroom deal-making out of redistricting. The bill, H.R. 2642, the Fairness and Independence in Redistricting Act of 2005, would require all states to create independent redistricting commissions when redrawing the lines of congressional districts once every 10 years to reflect changes in population. Instead of trying to game the system for partisan advantage as politicians currently do, these independent commissioners would follow a publicly agreed upon criteria to establish the districts.
How You Can Help
Call your representative and urge him or her to co-sponsor H.R. 2642, the Fairness and Independence in Redistricting Act of 2005.
Summary
Former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay (TX) engineered a mid-decade effort to redraw the state legislative and congressional district lines solely for partisan gain. That sparked a walkout from Texas Democrats and a national debate over partisan power plays in redistricting efforts. To rein in the abuses of backroom deal making around redistricting, several states began looking into ways to make the process fairer to their own voters. State reform efforts are continuing to this day.
When redistricting is done solely for partisan reasons, democracy is turned on its head with politicians choosing their voters rather than voters choosing their representatives.
A fair process would balance the need for accurate representation and respect for local communities with competition that affords voters real choices and more responsive representation. Independent commissions that operate in the open with public input are a significant step toward that goal.
