It’s Time to Get Rid Of Gerrymandering

Judy Beard

January 6, 2022

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(This article first appeared in the January/February 2022 issue of the American Postal Worker magazine)

As we gear up for the midterm elections in 2022, partisan and racial gerrymandering threatens to disenfranchise voters and further erode our democracy. That’s why we must pass federal voting rights legislation which would put an end to gerrymandering. 

Every ten years, the United States census is conducted.

When the new census data on the population is collected, state legislatures begin redrawing new congressional district maps based on this data.

Following the 2020 census, state legislatures across the nation went to work drawing their new congressional and state legislative district lines. Unfortunately, there is no comprehensive federal legislation to prevent state lawmakers from drawing district lines however they see fit.

Therefore, many new districts discriminate against voters based on age, race, and ideology to benefit a political party - a practice commonly known as gerrymandering.

As of early January 2022, around 20 states have approved new congressional maps. A majority of states allow for redistricting to be carried out by state legislatures. It is a well-known fact that congressional maps drawn by state legislators often skew in favor of the state party in power. The very process of redistricting itself is often shrouded in mystery. In many cases, deliberations occur confidentially and the redrawn maps are hidden from public view until the day a vote is scheduled. All of this makes it harder for watchdog groups and even the opposing political party from holding the party in power accountable.Right now, about 50 percent of states have yet to approve new congressional maps. With the 2022 elections coming up, it is not too late to strengthen voting rights and finally do something about the egregious practice of gerrymandering.

That is why it is important that Congress passes the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act along with either the For the People Act or the Freedom to Vote Act.

The bills, beyond making it easier to vote and expanding voting rights, include provisions to ensure the fairness of the redistricting process and outlaw partisan and racial gerrymandering. Click here to learn more about these voting rights bills.

Gerrymandering has no place in any democracy. In the face of such a clear threat to the sanctity of our elections, we desperately need action at the federal level to put an end to partisan redistricting.

We must pass these voting rights bills, which promise to put our elections back into the hands of the people instead of the hands of the powerful and wealthy few.

January 25 - APWU Live with the President

Join APWU Live with the President Livestream on January 25 at 7:00pm ET! During the event, President Dimondstein will discuss and answer questions on the Tentative Agreement, and provide updates on the ratification process. Register and submit questions for the event at apwu.org/live. The recording of the APWU Live will be available to view at apwu.org/live and youtube.com/apwucommunications following the event.

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