DAY 5 – CRACKING AND PACKING – DISTRICTING IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

July 2, 2013

Announcements

Tomorrow’s readings Read Sides’ “Gerrymandering is not what’s

wrong with American Politics” DO NOT READ Abramowitz et al.

I will send out a poll this afternoon for you to rank order your preferences for the legislative portfolio project. Let me know if you are going to pair up with

someone. Let me know your top 5 states. I will use a sophisticated algorithm to assign a

state to your group.

In the News - VRA Ruling

What is the Voting Rights Act? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EpI1YuyMCKY House vote - http://www.govtrack.us/congress/votes/89-1965/h87

What did the courts rule on? http://www.oyez.org/cases/2010-2019/2012/2012_12_96

“Section 4 of the VRA creates a formula that determines what states should be subject to Section 5, which requires states to submit any changes to election or voting laws, alterations of state legislative or congressional district lines, to the Justice Dept. for Approval. (That process is commonly known as pre-clearance.) That formula was – until today – based on a) states that had used some form of ballot test (literacy being the main one) to determine whether people can vote and b) whether less than 50 percent of eligible voters were registered to vote by November 1964.” Source:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/the-fix/wp/2013/06/25/what-the-voting-rights-act-decision-means-for-politics/

Are people paying attention to this ruling (and others)? Not really.

http://www.people-press.org/2013/07/01/public-divided-over-same-sex-marriage-rulings/

Source: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/the-fix/wp/2013/06/25/what-the-voting-rights-act-decision-means-for-politics/

Constitutional Qualifications for Holding Office

Age (25 for House, 30 for Senate) Citizenship (7 years for House, 9 years for Senate) Residency (In the state from which the

officeholder is elected)

Can states add to these qualifications? U.S. Term Limits versus Thornton http://www.oyez.org/cases/1990-1999/1994/1994_93_

1456#sort=vote

Do representatives have to live in their district? No. Morgan Griffith “Residency” ad -

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BmqPvjecs-A

Senate Apportionment

“One of the most malapportioned legislatures in the democratic world.” 9 largest states – 51% of population

18% of representation in Senate 26 smallest states – 18% of population

52% of representation

House Apportionment

The Method of Equal Proportions http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RUCn

b5_HZc0 2010 Census

http://www.census.gov/population/apportionment/files/Priority%20Values%202010.pdf

Last in – Minnesota (8) First out – North Carolina

Would have earned a 14th seat in Congress if they had 15,734 more residents.

Size of Congress Over Time Congress could

not agree on an apportionment strategy after 1920 census. Self-interest Practical

Concerns Reapportionme

nt Act of 1929 locks Congressional size at 435

Data collected from U.S. Census Bureau

Geographic Trends Apportionment

Over Time http://www.census

.gov/2010census/data/

Continued

population decline in Northeast and Midwest.

Population growth in the West and Sun Belt

Data collected from U.S. Census Bureau

Data collected from U.S. Census Bureau

Districting in the House

Voting Rights Act of 1965 Requires states to not dilute the

representation of racial minorities. Single-member districts

1967 law (PL 90-196) prohibited at-large and other multi-member elections by states with more than one House seat. Only affected 2 states – HI and NM Anticipated a concern that southern states might

move to this strategy. http://archive.fairvote.org/?page=526

Malapportionment

“The silent gerrymander” Motivated by:

Racism Rural bias

Reynolds v. Sims (1964) http://www.pbs.org/wnet/supremecourt/righ

ts/landmark_reynolds.html

2012 Electoral Map

Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/01/24/republican-vote-rigging-electoral-college_n_2546010.html

Electoral College Reform

Nebraska and Maine Winner of state’s popular vote gets 2 electoral

votes. Winner gets 1 electoral vote per Congressional

district won.

Seats Gained Under New Plan

Romney Gains Obama Gains

Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/01/24/republican-vote-rigging-electoral-college_n_2546010.html

Results If Plan Were Adopted Nationwide

Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/01/24/republican-vote-rigging-electoral-college_n_2546010.html

Gerrymandering

District line-drawing that purposefully maximizes seats for one party or voting bloc.

Types of gerrymandering Partisan Pro-Incumbent Majority-minority

Majority-Minority Districts

Before VRA, “blacks were systematically ‘packed’ into or ‘cracked’ across congressional districts to weaken their influence” (DOL p.53)

What are the pros and cons of majority-minority districts?

How have the courts ruled?

http://www.nationaljournal.com/congress/since-1982-minority-congressional-districts-have-tripled-graphic-20120413

North Carolina 4th District

Source: http://www.govtrack.us/congress/members/NC/4

Maryland 3rd

Source: http://www.govtrack.us/congress/members/MD/3

Texas 27th

Source: http://www.govtrack.us/congress/members/TX/27

Texas 23rd

Source: http://www.govtrack.us/congress/members/TX/23