Essay On Legislative Redistricting

Legislative redistricting in nature is a simple concept. However, the implication of legislative redistricting arises complications. Redistricting is a powerful tool used by our government. It influences how a state will be represented and in turn how the people will be represented. The misuse of this power can lead to catastrophic consequences. Redistricting in itself is not a political question, but because of its implication and threat to the right to vote, it becomes one.

Redistricting is the redrawing of the lines for states’ districts. When redistricting occurs the districts are accommodated to the population of the country. A state may lose or gain districts within its borders, but the country will maintain 435 representatives throughout the country. The reallocation of the representative districts is called reapportionment. When reapportionment occurs the representation of the state is likely to change. To counteract this shift of representation the elected Congressmen will

Ensuring the vote by drawing the district 's lines, entails that normal constituents of a party will have their right to vote violated. The Voting Right Act while allowing this dilution, does not consider the fact that the votes become so diluted that they are meaningless. Making a vote meaningless does not only throw the concept of voting out, but also the basis of this country, democracy. Democracy is the decision making process exercising the authority to solve public problem, according to the three principles of: Popular Sovereignty, Political Equality, Majority Rule. The principle of political equality is being ignored by making a group’s vote diluted to the point where it means nothing, makes their vote unequal to others. By stripping away the right to vote, people within the state are not correctly