2010 United States redistricting cycle

none August 2023 The 2010 United States redistricting cycle took place following the completion of the 2010 United States census. In all fifty states, various bodies re-drew state legislative districts. States that are apportioned more than one seat in the United States House of Representatives also drew new districts for that legislative body. The resulting new districts were first implemented for the 2011 and 2012 elections. The rules for redistricting vary from state to state, but all states draw new legislative and congressional maps either in the state legislature, in redistricting commissions, or through some combination of the state legislature and a redistricting commission. Though various laws and court decisions have put constraints on redistricting, many redistricting institutions continue to practice gerrymandering, which involves drawing new districts with the intention of giving a political advantage to specific groups.Miller, pp. 10-11 Political parties prepare for redistricting years in advance, and partisan control of redistricting institutions can provide a party with major advantages.Miller William J. Walling Jeremy The Political Battle over Congressional Redistricting 7 June 2013 Lexington Books 1–4 https://books.google.com/books?id=3dEaMt1NKYYC&q=2022+redistricting 10 November 2016 9780739169841 16 September 2020 https://web.archive.org/web/20200916090307/https://books.google.com/books?id=3dEaMt1NKYYC&dq=2022+redistricting live Aside from the possibility of mid-decade redistricting,Wilson Reid Nevada Republicans could take up mid-decade redistricting https://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/govbeat/wp/2015/02/04/nevada-republicans-could-take-up-mid-decade-redistricting/ 12 November 2016 The Washington Post 4 February 2015 13 November 2016 https://web.archive.org/web/20161113035049/https://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/govbeat/wp/2015/02/04/nevada-republicans-could-take-up-mid-decade-redistricting/ live the districts drawn in the 2010 redistricting cycle will remain in effect until the next round of redistricting following the 2020 United States census. This was the first cycle since the 2000 cycle. United States House of Representatives Reapportionment United States congressional apportionment thumb|280x280px|United States Congressional Apportionment 2012-2022 Article One of the United States Constitution establishes the United States House of Representatives and apportions representatives to the states based on population, with reapportionment occurring every ten years. The decennial United States census determines the population of each state. Each of the fifty states is guaranteed at least one representative, and the Huntington–Hill method is used to assign the remaining 385 seats to states based on the population of each state. Congress has provided for reapportionment every ten years since the enactment of the Reapportionment Act of 1929. Since 1913, the U.S. House of Representatives has consisted of 435 members, a number set by statute, though the number of representatives temporarily increased in 1959. Reapportionment also affects presidential elections, as each state is guaranteed electoral votes equivalent to the number of representatives and senators representing the state.July 2022 Newly created districts and eliminated districts The new seats were first contested in the 2012 United States House of Representatives elections. Eliminated districtsCreated districts Illinois 19 Iowa 5 Louisiana 7 Massachusetts 10 Michigan 15 Missouri 9 New Jersey 13 New York 28 New York 29 Ohio 17 Ohio 18 Pennsylvania 19 Arizona 9 Florida 26 Florida 27 Georgia 14 Nevada 4 South Carolina 7 Texas 33 Texas 34 Texas 35 Texas 36 Utah 4 Washington 10 Results of the 2010 cycle REDMAP thumb|349x349px|Partisan control of congressional redistricting after the 2010 elections, with the number of U.S. House seats each state will receive.#2c82b6 Democratic control#d63f3f Republican control#ecc61c Split or bipartisan control#60c53a Independent redistricting commission#c0c0c0 No redistricting necessary thumb|349x349px|Partisan control of U.S. state legislative redistricting following the 2010 census.#2016c9 Democratic control#c91616 Republican control#ecc61c Split or bipartisan control#47bc1c Independent redistricting commission As Republicans had made significant gains in the 2010 state legislative elections, the Republican State Leadership Committee established a program called REDMAP in order to draw legislative, congressional and other district maps to ensure Republican victories in future elections. Among the strategists involved in the drawing of favorable maps was Thomas Hofeller and strategist Chris Jankowski. Democrats were particularly unhappy with the results of the 2012 House elections in which Democratic candidates for the U.S. House received more votes than Republican House candidates, but Republicans retained control of the chamber.Levitz Eric Democrats aim to 'unrig' congressional maps in 2020 http://www.msnbc.com/msnbc/democrats-aim-unrig-congressional-maps-2020 31 October 2016 MSNBC 4 August 2015 30 October 2016 https://web.archive.org/web/20161030143052/http://www.msnbc.com/msnbc/democrats-aim-unrig-congressional-maps-2020 live After the results of the 2010 census results were released: Legislative Republican majorities in both chamber and governorship were in control of the redistricting process over 210 congressional districts across 18 states Legislative Democratic majorities in both chamber and governorship were in control of the redistricting process over 44 congressional districts across 6 states Both parties, whether through divided government or through bipartisan commissions, were in control of the redistricting process over 100 congressional districts across 15 states Independent commissions were in control of the redistricting process over 74 congressional districts across 4 states. 7 states were represented by at-large House districtsNational Overview https://redistricting.lls.edu/national-overview/ 2024-12-06 All About Redistricting en In addition, the Democrats were deeply disadvantaged by the resulting state legislative maps, with similar effects of malapportionment being observed in Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Michigan and North Carolina. This perceived skewing of the redistricting process set the stage for several legal challenges from voters and groups in the court system, including several heard at the Supreme Court level. https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2017/10/gerrymandering-technology-redmap-2020/543888/ How Redistricting Became a Technological Arms Race Vann Newkirk II October 28, 2017 May 6, 2019 The Atlantic Changes to the redistricting process since 2012 Federal court rulings In the 2013 case, Shelby County v. Holder, the Supreme Court struck down Section 4(b) of the Voting Rights Act, which was a coverage formula that determined which states and counties required preclearance from the Justice Department before making changes to voting laws and procedures.Levitt Justin Who draws the lines?-Preclearance http://redistricting.lls.edu/who-preclear.php All About Redistricting 15 November 2016 4 November 2016 https://web.archive.org/web/20161104163736/http://redistricting.lls.edu/who-preclear.php live The formula had covered states with a history of minority voter disenfranchisement, and the preclearance procedure was designed to block discriminatory voting practices. In the 2019 case of Rucho v. Common Cause, the Supreme Court held that claims of partisan gerrymandering present nonjusticiable political questions that cannot be reviewed by federal courts. https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-court-gerrymandering/in-major-elections-ruling-supreme-court-allows-partisan-map-drawing-idUSKCN1TS24Z In major elections ruling, U.S. Supreme Court allows partisan map drawing Andrew Chung Lawrence Hurley June 27, 2019 June 27, 2019 Reuters June 27, 2019 https://web.archive.org/web/20190627163814/https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-court-gerrymandering/in-major-elections-ruling-supreme-court-allows-partisan-map-drawing-idUSKCN1TS24Z live In another 2019 case, Department of Commerce v. New York, the Supreme Court blocked the Trump administration from adding a question to the 2020 census regarding the citizenship of respondents.https://www.nytimes.com/2019/06/27/us/politics/census-citizenship-question-supreme-court.html Supreme Court Leaves Census Question on Citizenship in Doubt Liptak Adam 2019-06-27 The New York Times 2019-06-27 en-US 0362-4331 2019-06-27 https://web.archive.org/web/20190627175620/https://www.nytimes.com/2019/06/27/us/politics/census-citizenship-question-supreme-court.html live State court rulings In 2015, the Supreme Court of Florida ordered the state to draw a new congressional map on the basis of a 2010 state constitutional amendment that banned partisan gerrymandering.Prokop Andrew Florida's Supreme Court has struck another blow against gerrymandering https://www.vox.com/2015/12/5/9851152/florida-gerrymandering-ruling September 11, 2019 Vox December 5, 2015 November 24, 2019 https://web.archive.org/web/20191124032612/https://www.vox.com/2015/12/5/9851152/florida-gerrymandering-ruling live In 2018, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court threw out the 2011 U.S. House of Representatives map on the grounds that it violated the state constitution; the court established new redistricting standards requiring districts to be compact and to minimize the splitting of counties and towns.Lai Jonathan Navratil Liz Pennsylvania, gerrymandered: A guide to Pa.'s congressional map redistricting fight https://www.inquirer.com/philly/news/politics/state/pennsylvania-gerrymandering-case-congressional-redistricting-map-coverage-guide-20180615.html Philly.com 2019-06-29 2019-06-29 https://web.archive.org/web/20190629053916/https://www.inquirer.com/philly/news/politics/state/pennsylvania-gerrymandering-case-congressional-redistricting-map-coverage-guide-20180615.html live In 2019, a North Carolina state court struck down the state's legislative districts on the grounds that the district had been created with the partisan intent of favoring Republican candidates.Mills Rodrigo Chris North Carolina court strikes down state legislative map https://thehill.com/regulation/court-battles/459787-north-carolina-court-strikes-down-state-legislative-map The Hill September 3, 2019 September 5, 2019 September 5, 2019 https://web.archive.org/web/20190905211718/https://thehill.com/regulation/court-battles/459787-north-carolina-court-strikes-down-state-legislative-map live Ballot measures In 2015, Ohio voters approved a ballot measure changing the composition of the commission charged with drawing state legislative districts, adding two legislative appointees to the commission and creating rules and guidelines designed to make partisan gerrymandering more difficult.Siegel Jim Voters approve issue to reform Ohio's redistricting process http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/public/2015/election/ohio-state-issue-1-redistricting.html 19 November 2016 The Columbus Dispatch 4 November 2015 15 November 2016 https://web.archive.org/web/20161115204655/http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/public/2015/election/ohio-state-issue-1-redistricting.html live In May 2018, Ohio voters approved a proposal that modified the state's congressional redistricting processes.Wilson Reid Ohio voters pass redistricting reform initiative https://thehill.com/homenews/state-watch/386839-ohio-voters-pass-redistricting-reform-initiative 7 November 2018 The Hill 8 May 2018 8 November 2018 https://web.archive.org/web/20181108031253/https://thehill.com/homenews/state-watch/386839-ohio-voters-pass-redistricting-reform-initiative live In 2018, voters in Colorado and Michigan approved of a proposal to establish an independent redistricting commission for congressional and state legislative districts in their respective states. Missouri voters approved of a proposal to have a "non-partisan state demographer" draw state legislative districts.Moon Emily HOW DID CITIZEN-LED REDISTRICTING INITIATIVES FARE IN THE MID-TERMS? https://psmag.com/news/how-did-citizen-led-redistricting-initiatives-fare-in-the-mid-terms 7 November 2018 Pacific Standard 7 November 2018 7 November 2018 https://web.archive.org/web/20181107224901/https://psmag.com/news/how-did-citizen-led-redistricting-initiatives-fare-in-the-mid-terms live In Utah, voters approved the creation of a redistricting commission to draw congressional and state legislative districts, though the Utah state legislature retains the power to reject these maps.Rodgers Bethany Wood Benjamin Utah's new anti-gerrymandering law is at risk, group warns https://www.sltrib.com/news/politics/2020/02/21/utahs-new-anti/ The Salt Lake Tribune February 22, 2020 April 23, 2020 March 14, 2020 https://web.archive.org/web/20200314192334/https://www.sltrib.com/news/politics/2020/02/21/utahs-new-anti/ live In 2020, voters in Virginia approved the establishment of a bipartisan redistricting commission for both congressional and state legislative redistricting. The commission consists eight legislators and eight non-legislator citizens, with the commission split evenly between Democrats and Republicans.Weiner Rachel Virginians approve turning redistricting over to bipartisan commission https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/virginia-politics/virginia-redistricting-amendment-results/2020/11/02/5d1ef242-19f8-11eb-befb-8864259bd2d8_story.html The Washington Post November 4, 2020 References Category:Redistricting in the United States Category:Electoral geography of the United States