Redistricting Bootcamp-Meeting 3

8/6/2019 Redistricting Bootcamp-Meeting 3

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REDISTRICTING BOOTCAMP:LAYING THE GROUNDWORK

Presented May 5, 2011


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Acknowledgments

We would like to thank State Representative ArthurTurner, Jr., State Representative La Shawn Ford andCommissioner Robert Steele for lending their

support to this non-partisan event. We thank Toni Pitchford, Nikol Miller and Steve

Laue of the US Census Bureau for their technicalassistance.

We also thank the Tutor Mentor Connection forallowing us to use their maps.


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Partners

Lawndale Alliance

Illinois Campaign for Accountable Redistricting (ICAR)

Independent Voters of Illinois-Independent Precinct

Organization (IVI-IPO)

Open Door Foundation

Empowered Citizens of North Lawndale (ECONL)

The United Congress of Community and ReligiousOrganizations

North Lawndale Community News


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Planning Committee

Richard Barnett

Melva Brownlee

Michael Evers

Millie Goldsmith Bruce Jackson

Mickey Johnson

Jimmy Lee Lard Valerie F. Leonard

Isaac Lewis

Fred Mitchell

Gene Moreno

Josina Morita

Aviva Patt Sondra Spellman

Dwayne Truss

Jeffery Turner Jocelyn Woodards

Gladys Woodson


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Presented by Jimmy Lee Lard

The What, Why, When, Who, and How


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What is Redistricting?

Redistricting is the process of redefining the political

geographic boundaries including representative

districts, senate districts, and congressional districts.

The State of Illinois Constitution gives the GeneralAssembly the responsibility for redrawing

legislative boundaries every ten years after the

release of the decennial Census.

Source: Illinois Redistricting Website


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Apportionment

"Apportionment" is the process of dividing the 435memberships, or seats, in the House of Representativesamong the 50 states based on the population figurescollected during the decennial census. There are 435

seats in the House of Representatives. The State of Illinois has 19 representatives and will lose

a seat Although the States population has grown 3% since the last

Census, other states in the Southwest have grown at much

faster rates

Source: Census.gov
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RUCnb5_HZc0http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RUCnb5_HZc0


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Apportionment

On the state level, most states maintain a fixed number oflegislators, but some let the size of the legislature grow orshrink as the population grows or shrinks Illinois has 118 seats in the House of Representatives and 59

Senators

Each Illinois Senate District is nested, meaning they arecomprised of 2 Representative Districts

Each district must have equal population.

Reapportionment, then, is the process every ten years ofdeciding, based on population, how many representatives astate will receive. This also happens on the state and locallevels.

Source: Brennan Center for Justice


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When is redistricting done?

Redistricting is done every 10 years, after the decennial Census In March of years ending in 0 (1980, 1990, 2000, etc.),the Census Bureau

sends out questionnaires and census workers to count the population, andcompiles basic demographic data like gender, age, and race.

Citizenship is not taken into account

By December 31st of years ending in 0, the Census Bureau sendspopulation counts to the President.

The President, in turn, passes the population figures along to Congress,along with a calculation of how many federal Congressmembers areapportioned to each state, using a formula set by federal statute.

Within one year of the federal Census, the Census Bureau also sendspopulation data to the states.This information includes population counts byage and race, down to individual blocks.



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Who Draws the Lines?

In Illinois, the StateLegislature draws thelines, if a plan may bedrawn and approved byJune 30th .

If there is no agreement,then the processcontinues as outlined onthe following timeline.

Source: ildcca.org


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Redistricting Timeline

December 21, 2010 State Populations and congressional apportionment delivered to President

Obama. Illinois loses one of its 19 Congressional Districts.

January 12, 2011 Inauguration of 97th General Assembly

June 30, 2011 If no redistricting plan becomes effective by this date, a Legislative

Redistricting Commission shall be constituted.

July 10, 2011 Deadline for formation of Redistricting Commission. The Commission shallconsist of eight members, no more than four of whom shall be members of

the same political party.

August 10, 2011 Deadline for Redistricting Commission to file an approved plan with the

Secretary of State approved by at least five members.

September 1, 2011 If the Redistricting Commission fails to file an approved plan, the Supreme

Court shall submit the names of two persons, not of the same political party,to the Secretary of State no later than this date.

September 5, 2011 No later than this date the Secretary of State shall draw by random

selection the name of one of the two persons to serve as the ninth member

of the Commission.

October 5, 2011 Last day for Redistricting Commission to file a redistricting plan with the

Secretary of State approved by at least five members.



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Why does redistricting matter?

Allows politicians to choose their voters, rather than

have voters choose them

May be used to eliminate incumbents, or

consolidate their power May be used to eliminate challengers

Example: After Barack Obama won 30% of the vote

against Congressman Bobby Rush, the district was re-drawn to eliminate Barack Obamas house



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Why You Should Care About Redistricting

May be used to pack partisans

Draw districts in such a way as to get as many people

as possible in a district who are most likely to vote a

certain way Split communities

Divide communities among several representative

districts such that they never gain power

Dilute the minority vote



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How are the lines drawn?

States have a number of options to start the process

By evaluating current districts

By drawing around minority communities to ensure

compliance with Voting Rights Acts Start at northeast corner and work to the southwest

Start at southeast corner and work to northwest

Start at center and branch outwards

Transparency Allowing the public to understand the process and

provide input into how and where the lines are drawn



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Presented by Valerie F. Leonard

Legal Considerations


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14th Amendment

Fourteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution:

The U.S. Constitution provision that includes the

Equal Protection Clause, which prohibits the states

from denying persons equal protection of the law.The Equal Protection Clause is the primary basis of

the one-person, one-vote principle.



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15th Amendment

The Fifteenth Amendment (Amendment XV) to the

United States Constitution prohibits each

government in the United States from denying a

citizen the right to vote based on that citizen's race,color, or previous condition of servitude" (i.e.,

slavery).

Ratified on February 3, 1870.

Source: Wikipedia


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Voting Rights Act of 1965

Based on the 15th Amendment

Prohibits states from imposing any "voting qualification or prerequisite tovoting, or standard, practice, or procedure ... to deny or abridge the rightof any citizen of the United States to vote on account of race or color. Congress intended the Act to outlaw the practice of requiring otherwise

qualified voters to pass literacy in order to register to vote, a principal meansby which Southern states had prevented African-Americans from exercising thefranchise.

Established extensive federal oversight of elections administration,providing that states with a history of discriminatory voting practices (so-called covered jurisdictions) could not implement any change affectingvoting without first obtaining the approval of the Department of Justice, a

process known as pre-clearance. The Act has been renewed and amended by Congress four times, the most

recent being a 25-year extension signed into law by President George W.Bush in 2006.

Source: Wikipedia


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Illinois Voting Rights Act of 2011

Legislative Districts and Representative Districts must bedrawn to create majority-minority districts, crossoverdistricts, coalition districts, or influence districts

Provides definitions for the new districts.

The Voting Rights Act of Illinois cannot override anyprovision in the US Constitution or Illinois Constitution

Any violations of the Act will lead to the creation of a

new redistricting plan that will correct the violation. Creates the Redistricting Transparency and Public

Participation Act.

Source: ilga.gov


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New Districts Defined by the Illinois

Voting Rights Act of 2011

Coalition district: A district where more than one group ofracial minorities or language minorities may form a coalitionto elect the candidate of the coalitions choice.

Crossover district: A district where a racial minority or

language minority constitutes less than a majority of thevoting-age population but where this minority, at leastpotentially, is large enough to elect the candidate of itschoice with help from voters who are members of themajority and who cross over to support the minorityspreferred candidate.

Influence district: A district where a racial minority orlanguage minority can influence the outcome of an electioneven if its preferred candidate cannot be elected.



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Illinois Redistricting Transparency

and Public Participation Act

Senate and House of Representatives must each establish acommittee to consider proposals to redistrict the Legislative Districtsor Representative Districts, as applicable After every decennial Census

They have the option of creating a Joint Committee

Each committee or joint committee must conduct at least 4 publichearings statewide to receive testimony and inform the public on theapplicable existing Districts

All hearings must be open to the public.

The Chairperson of each committee or the Co-Chairpersons of a

joint committee, as applicable, must provide a minimum of 6 daysnotice before any proposed hearing,with the Secretary of theSenate, Clerk of the House, or both, as applicable.

Source: ilga.gov


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Guidelines to Drawing District

Boundaries in Illinois

Districts must be compact when practical

Districts must have equal population

Districts must be contiguous

Districts must not be drawn in ways that violate

state and federal voting rights laws


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Presenter: Aviva Patt

The Real Deal: Case Studies


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The Project

The Players

Objectives

The Map

The Suit

Case Study:1980 Remap


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Examples from Illinois, Cook County and Chicago

Gerrymandering Lessons from Home


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What is gerrymandering?

Gerrymandering is a practice of political corruption thatattempts to establish a political advantage for a particularparty or group by manipulating geographic boundaries tocreate partisan, incumbent-protected, and neutral districts. Used to achieve desired electoral results for a particular party,

or may be used to help or hinder a particular group ofconstituents, such as a political, racial, linguistic, religious or classgroup.

Gerrymandering may be used for positive or negative purposes Negative Use: To give a party or group of constituents

disproportionate power Positive use: in US federal voting district boundaries that produce a

proportion of constituencies with an African-American or otherminority in the majority (these are thus called "minority-majoritydistricts").

Source: Wikipedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Political_corruptionhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Constituent_(politics)http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minority-majority_districtshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minority-majority_districtshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minority-majority_districtshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minority-majority_districtshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minority-majority_districtshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minority-majority_districtshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Constituent_(politics)http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Political_corruption


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The History of Gerrymandering The Original Gerry-Mander

First printed in March 1812, this political

cartoon was drawn in reaction to the state

senate electoral districts drawn by the

Massachusetts legislature to favour the

Democratic-Republican Party candidates of

Governor Elbridge Gerry over the

Federalists. The caricature satirises the

bizarre shape of a district in Essex County,

Massachusetts as a dragon. Federalist

newspapers editors and others at the timelikened the district shape to a salamander,

and the word gerrymanderwas a blend of

that word and Governor Gerry's last name.

Source: Wikipedia
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/96/The_Gerry-Mander_Edit.png


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Packing and Cracking

The two aims of gerrymandering are to

maximize the effect of supporters' votes and to

minimize the effect of opponents' votes.

Packing-Concentrates as many voters of one typeinto a single electoral district to reduce theirinfluence in other districts.

Cracking-spreads out voters of a particular type

among many districts in order to deny them asufficiently large voting bloc in any particular

district.

Source: Wikipedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voting_blochttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voting_bloc


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Congressional District 4

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:IL04_109.gif
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:IL04_109.gifhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:IL04_109.gif


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Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:IL-15_congressional_district.gif
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:IL-15_congressional_district.gifhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:IL-15_congressional_district.gifhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:IL-15_congressional_district.gifhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:IL-15_congressional_district.gifhttp://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/ff/IL-15_congressional_district.gif


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Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:IL17_109.gif
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:IL17_109.gifhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:IL17_109.gifhttp://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/b/b9/IL17_109.gif


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Cook County Districts

Source: Cook County Clerk


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City of Chicago Ward Map

Source: http://thesixthward.blogspot.com
http://thesixthward.blogspot.com/http://thesixthward.blogspot.com/


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Further Information

Questions regarding this presentation and ways you

may get involved may be addressed to

Valerie F. LeonardCo-Founder

Lawndale Alliance

773-521-3137

[email protected]
mailto:[email protected]:[email protected]

Redistricting Bootcamp-Meeting 3

Documents

Transcript of Redistricting Bootcamp-Meeting 3