Unconstitutional Gerrymandering: Politicians Picking Their Voters

Gerrymandering is an unconstitutional practice that allows politicians to manipulate electoral district boundaries in order to gain an advantage. It has been a commonplace trick used by politicians since the early 1800s, and today it is still a highly controversial issue in the United States. Redistricting for congressional and state legislative boundaries captures wide attention after new census numbers are released every 10 years, allowing politicians to manipulate the boundaries to their advantage.

In 2011 as a state senator, LaRose voted for the gerrymander-rigged political maps Ohio had from 2011 to 2021, which were declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court in 2019. The court ruled that the map violated the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment. Additionally, the court case, Reeves v. Mississippi, alleged that the state's congressional maps were racially gerrymandered, and the decision affirmed that Mississippi is no longer allowed to draw districts that favor one party over another.

Gerrymandering has been used to limit the voting power of minority communities, particularly African Americans and Hispanics. It has resulted in districts with unequal populations and has led to a lack of representation for people of color in the political process. This has been seen in Wilmington, Delaware, where anti-gerrymandering initiatives have been implemented in order to ensure that incarcerated people are counted at their home addresses instead of the prison address.

Opponents of Republican-drawn political maps have also had difficulty challenging them as partisan gerrymanders. This has been seen in Clarkstown, New York, where town supervisor George Hoehmann and others have been accused of gerrymandering. The practice of gerrymandering, configuration of electoral districts to favor one political party, has been used by both Democrats and Republicans, and has resulted in a lack of fair representation for both minority and majority parties.

In order to combat gerrymandering, some states have adopted anti-gerrymandering amendments. These amendments are designed to create more equitable and fair electoral maps, which are based on population rather than party affiliation. In Florida and North Carolina, these amendments have prevented gerrymandered maps from being implemented, but if these amendments are not followed, both states could see a return to gerrymandered maps that could favor one party over another.

Gerrymandering is an unconstitutional practice that undermines the integrity of the electoral process. It has been used by politicians to manipulate district boundaries in order to gain an advantage, and has resulted in a lack of fair representation for minority and majority parties. In order to prevent gerrymandering, states should adopt anti-gerrymandering amendments that create more equitable and fair electoral maps.