The practice by which a controlling party draws election district lines primarily for the partisan purpose of enhancing its prospects in future elections has been a subversive force in party politics since the beginning of our republic. Political gerrymandering is an abuse that violates a bedrock principle of our democracy: that we should be governed by those selected by the majority of voters.
Historically, both parties have been guilty of manipulating district lines to gain a political advantage. In the 2010 midterm elections, Republicans captured control of the Legislature and Governor’s office in 18 states, including the swing states of Wisconsin, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Florida and North Carolina. The Democrats, by contrast, have that same hold on only six states. Consequently, Republican-controlled states drew district lines for 173 of the 435 seats in the House of Representatives, while Democrat-controlled states redistricted only 44 seats. Not surprisingly, in states where Republicans controlled redistricting, Republican candidates for the House won roughly 53 percent of the vote and 72 percent of the seats. Where the Democrats controlled redistricting, their candidates won about 56 percent of the vote and 71 percent of the seats. As these statistics reflect, gerrymandering is a form of voter dilution that thwarts the will of the majority.
