Wednesday, June 28, 2017

Gerry Mander (D)

       WHAT THIS GUMMINT DOES
     

    Politicians are redrawing district
lines and this is a problem





The process of redrawing electoral district lines to give a political party an advantage in elections.



Gerrymandering has become a big problem in states like Maryland where some neighborhoods have wound up split into as many as four different congressional districts. The paint-by-numbers congressional map could soon get a facelift due to some important court cases.

Gerrymandering in Crofton

Her neighbors in Anne Arundel County have had a hard time petitioning lawmakers on important issues like hospital and school funding, and in many cases the districts become so confusing that people do not know who their representatives are.
Jennifer Bevan-Dangel has lived in the same house in Crofton, MD for 10 years, but in 2012 local officials redrew congressional district lines and split her community in half.

"We have lived in two different congressional districts just by staying in the exact same house," Bevan-Dangel said.

That line change is called gerrymandering, and it can cause a lot of problems in places like Crofton.

Those wonky district lines can cause big problems in communities that find themselves divided up among multiple congressional districts.

Bevan-Dangel said her neighbors in Anne Arundel County have had a hard time petitioning lawmakers on important issues like hospital and school funding, and in many cases the districts become so confusing that people do not know who their representatives are.

<snip>

Taking gerrymandering to court

The "paint by numbers" congressional maps could be reigned in soon thanks to a slew of court cases challenging gerrymandering practices.

One lawsuit headed to the U.S. federal district court of appeals in Maryland argues the state's Democratic-leaning districts violate Republican's first amendment rights.

And the Supreme Court has agreed to hear a similar case out of Wisconsin where Democrats hope to prove gerrymandering is leading to a significant amount of wasted votes, violating their constitutional rights.

Francois says the court will have to determine if there is a point at which officials gerrymander so blatantly "to the extent that it becomes almost anti-democratic."

He added that until the court reaches a verdict on that case, other gerrymandering cases are in limbo.

<snip>

Gov. Larry Hogan (R-MD) and former Gov. Martin O'Malley (D-MD) have both said publicly that they would like to see independent redistricting commissions formed to examine the gerrymandering in Maryland.

Hogan proposed legislation last year to create a panel, but Democrats in the state legislature have called for national or redistricting reform instead. [FULL]

I live across  the street from people  represented by Maryland's only Republican?; Rep. Andy Harris (who dismissed President Trump’s proposed federal budget and backed the congressional investigation into his campaign’s ties to Russia).   I get Rep. Anthony G Brown (who tweeted: "Skipping Inauguration. @RepJohnLewis a civil rights hero). So, you might say that I am disenfranchised. 

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

Down here we just call it Wassermandering. If you own a yamaka in S. Florida, you are in lil Debbies district. -Anymouse

Anonymous said...

Y'all aint got nuttin on Corrine Brown's old 3rd district in north AND central Florida. It ran from Jacksonville's north side all the way to Orlando.
Tim

Rodger the Real King of France said...

don't live there; dun't care,

Anonymous said...

Looking at a couple of those maps, I can't tell whether they are to keep Mau-Maus out or in. What really enrages me about forced all black districts is the assumption or conclusion that a white person, especially a man, cannot represent the interests of blacks in his district. That's demeaning to all involved.
Unless the only thing the blacks want is free shit and a pass on thuggery, which is more and more possible lately.

There's lots of gerrymandering without regard to race too, to protect incumbents or try to force them out with a newby from the opposing party.
Seems to me a district could be computer constructed by simple population and geometry, intentionally leaving out the party affiliation of the residents.
Lt. Col. Gen. Tailgunner dick

Eskyman said...

Here in CA, gerrymandering is down to fine art. Everybody's in a "safe seat."

Well, not quite; they're still refining the technique, so now we have ALL Dems in safe seats, but several of the R's districts are still being "adjusted to meet community needs." LOL.

This seems to have upset the R's, who apparently agreed to give up power forever, in return for having a sinecure for life. Too bad if they are, they agreed to the Devil's bargain and there's no going back.

I used to be sympathetic, but since most R's are just the tails on the Dem dogs I no longer care.

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