Redistricting
The epidemic of gerrymandering poses a growing threat to our democracy. The completion of the 2010 Census and start of the 2011 redistricting cycle makes this an especially important time for the Brennan Center's advocacy and public education efforts on redistricting and reapportionment.
It's an open secret: more and more legislative districts reflect calculations by those in power about how they can best preserve that power, while fewer and fewer give meaningful representation to communities of voters. Incumbents carve the citizens of their state into districts for maximum personal and partisan advantage, and democracy suffers: neighborhoods are split, competing candidates are drawn out of contention, groups of voters are ‘cracked' or ‘packed' to manipulate their voting power. We like to think that voters choose their politicians-but in the redistricting process, politicians choose their voters.
Well-designed redistricting systems, in contrast, can help ensure that elected public servants actually serve their public. Moreover, they can inspire public confidence in both a process and an outcome recognized as fair.
Redistricting 101 | State-by-State Advocacy | Advocates Redistricting Kit
The Brennan Center has produced a variety of materials on redistricting, including a 90-minute full training curriculum for advocates, analysis of reform proposals in states, and a suite of documents to prepare advocates and members of the media for participation in the redistricting process.
About the Brennan Center's Redistricting Work
Building on our analyses of successful and unsuccessful reform initiatives and our extensive study of redistricting practices nationwide, the Brennan Center offers top-flight legal and policy expertise to advocates and officials seeking to develop effective redistricting bills and initiatives. We facilitate consensus on policy goals and then translate those goals into language appropriate for legislation or ballot measures; we also review and analyze text drafted by others for potential constitutional and other legal concerns. Once legislation is introduced, Brennan Center attorneys accept invitations to deliver written and oral expert testimony, and offer strategic advice on building support for reform. The Brennan Center has also frequently filed friend-of-the-court briefs in redistricting litigation, especially those involving the use of redistricting for undue partisan gain or at the expense of minority voters.
The Brennan Center's publications and public advocacy further promote the values of meaningful redistricting reform: counting the population and redrawing the district lines in a way that is equitable, fair, and sensitive to diversity. The Brennan Center's publication include:
- A Citizen's Guide to Redistricting, a thorough but user-friendly review of the redistricting process that serves as a valuable primer for those new to the topic and a quick-reference guide for seasoned experts.
- The Real Y2K Problem, an accessible analysis of the technical and legal issues facing legislators and reform advocates in redistricting.
- Beyond the Color Line?, focusing on the ramifications of redistricting, and the litigation that often results, for race and representation.
Brennan Center attorneys have also authored numerous law review articles, magazine pieces, and opinion pieces detailing the promises and challenges of redistricting in the public interest.
The Brennan Center filed a motion in New York Supreme Court seeking to intervene and help defend New York’s new law ending prison-based gerrymandering in state and local redistricting.
United States v. Village of Port Chester
Brennan Center represented Fair Vote in providing remedy to a Section 2 challenge against the Village of Port Chester.
LULAC v. Perry (Sup. Ct. consolidated cases) Session v. Perry (E.D. Tex.)
These Supreme Court cases arose from the Texas Legislature’s notorious mid-decade “re-redistricting” of the state’s congressional districts.
New Census Data Will Help Communities in the Redistricting Process
The Census Bureau is in the middle of releasing mountains of data -- and this data is about to make it much easier for communities of interest to define themselves and speak up effectively in the redistricting process.
New Census Data will Help Correct Prison-based Gerrymandering
Last week the United State Census Bureau released a new data file giving states new opportunities to correct the decades-old problem of prison-based gerrymandering.
Prison-based gerrymandering occurs when the thousands of people incarcerated in state and federal prisons are counted by the Census as residents of the districts where they are incarcerated rather than residents of their home communities, where most inmates will return upon release.
Illustrations by Risko
Civil Rights Groups Answer Summary Judgment Motion in Prison-Based Gerrymandering Lawsuit
Attorneys for the fifteen voters from around New York State who have joined the legal defense of New York’s law ending prison-based gerrymandering today filed papers asking New York Supreme Court Judge Eugene Devine to grant their motion for summary judgment and uphold the law.
Judge Allows Organizations Representing Voters to Defend Law Ending Prison-Based Gerrymandering
A New York Supreme Court judge has cleared the way for civil rights organizations representing fifteen voters from across New York State to join the Attorney General in defending New York’s law ending “prison-based gerrymandering,” a practice that had distorted representation across New York State.
Civil Rights Organizations File Motion to Defend Law Ending Prison-Based Gerrymandering
Today, top civil rights organizations filed a motion in New York Supreme Court asking to intervene to help defend New York’s new law allocating people in prison to their home communities for redistricting and reapportionment.
Letter to LATFOR Regarding Compliance with Part XX
The Brennan Center and co-counsel for the parties seeking to intervene and defend the law ending prison-based gerrymandering in New York sent this letter to the Legislative Task Force on Demographic Research and Reapportionment (LATFOR), prompted by reports that LATFOR may not be complying with the law.
New York State Senate Democratic Public Forum on Independent Redistricting Reform
Keesha Gaskins submitted written testimony for New York State Senate Democratic Public Forum on Independent Redistricting Reform.
Testimony of Myrna Perez before the New Jersey Apportionment Commission
Myrna Perez gave testimony regarding redistricting before the New Jersey Apportionment Commission.
Supreme Court Preview: Future of the Voting Rights Act
In advance of the Supreme Court's latest session, the Brennan Center calls attention to two important cases that could impact the future of the Voting Rights Act.
On Capital Tonight, Brennan Center Urges LATFOR to Follow Law
The Brennan Center's Wendy Weiser appeared on Capital Tonight to discuss the decision by New York's task force on reapportionment, known as LATFOR, not to comply with the law ending prison-based gerrymandering.
This summary captures the provisions of state law that require consideration of “communities of interest.”