Word for the Day: Gerrymander
In 1812, Eldridge Gerry was the Mayor of Boston and signed a bill that created a partisan voting district. Gerrymandering is the political term, named after the Mayor, and the term is considered to carry negative connotations including corruption of the democratic process.
The term will be used most often when voting districts are re-drawn utilizing the data collected and provided by the Bureau of the Census and when the new voting blocks result in greater advantage for some and unfair representation for others; Gerrymandering is the word of choice.
In 25 states, the state legislature has the primary responsibility for creating a redistricting plan and in many of these states the state governor has the final approval.
"On June 27, 2019, the Supreme Court, by a 5 to 4 vote, ruled that claims of unconstitutional partisan gerrymandering are not subject to federal court review because they present non-justifiable political questions, removing the issue from the federal court's purview."
Congressional Research Service
https://crsreports.congress.gov
LSB10324
update 5/ 15/2021
The community where I reside became an incorporated town and then a city all within less than a year; during the Covid outbreak. At a workshop meeting, procedures were discussed for the creation of Wards. The following information was being researched and here is an example that I found at MRSC in Washington state.
https://mrsc.org/Home/Explore-Topics/Governance/Offices-and-Officers/Council-Election-by-Wards-or-Districts.aspx
Election Procedures
" Council candidates must be a resident of the ward they wish to represent. Candidates are elected by the voters within the ward at the primary election to select the finalists who will appear on the general election ballot for election by all voters in the city."
