Gerrymandering explained How US politics is cutting its own flesh with constituency gerrymandering
Gerrymandering is the term Americans use to describe the shifting of constituencies in order to gain political advantage. Both Republicans and Democrats have done it - or want to do it. However, the politicians are forgetting something, as the blue News video illustrates.
No time? blue News summarizes for you
- Shifting constituencies to get more votes or representatives in the USA is called gerrymandering.
- That's why it's a hot topic right now.
- Our video, which includes a pie chart, shows what nasty consequences the behavior of politicians from both parties can have.
The United States of America in 1812: The governor of Massachusetts has the electoral districts redrawn to favor his party. The new electoral district resembles a salamander. The politician's name was Elbridge Gerry.
His name lives on in the USA today - in the portmanteau of his name and the animal referred to. Since then, gerrymandering has been understood as the unfair shifting of constituencies. The term is booming under Donald Trump.
Tit for tat
The reason: the US President has knocked on the door of the Republicans in Texas to see if they could redraw the constituencies in order to increase the number of Republican MPs before the mid-term elections next year.
The redistricting has been in force since the end of August, which should bring the Texas Republicans five more representatives. California was the first Democratically governed state to react: However, voters there are allowed to decide whether to redraw constituencies to counterbalance Texas.
If the people say no at the ballot box, the constituencies will only be updated after the next census in 2030. Various federal states are now also discussing similar measures. But politicians are forgetting one crucial point. You can find out what this is in the video at the top.
