Elections on November 4th have voters reconsidering whether fairness is in this fall.
by: Lilian Su
Elections on November 4th have voters reconsidering whether fairness is in this fall.
This November, a special election took place in California asking voters whether Proposition 50 should be passed. This proposal allows the state to redraw its current congressional districts in retaliation to Texas’ unconventional redistricting efforts encouraged by the current administration.
California is seeking to gain Democratic seats in the House of Representatives since Texas’ redistricting will result in more Republican representatives.
The practice of drawing congressional districts that give one party an advantage is known as gerrymandering. The act of gerrymandering by political parties has not been deemed unconstitutional, but this amendment puts into question whether or not it should be.
“Other states have commissions like we do, other states do not, like Texas does not. So they feel like they’re entitled to just redrawing the districts as they please because the Republicans control that state,” said U.S. Government teacher at Marshall Secondary School Michael Millan who points out both the consequences and purposes.
Such a change will temporarily replace statewide bipartisan districts with legislatively created ones until the 2030 U.S. Census.
Less than a quarter of states have independent redistricting commissions, and one of them is California. As an amendment to California’s constitution, the proposed text calls for the U.S. Congress to require the use of bipartisan district commissions in our constitution.
Current legal precedent insists that redistricting is only unconstitutional on the basis of racial discrimination. Federal courts in Texas are currently in the process of hearing out the lawsuits against the state’s new congressional maps.
“If you only have one party in control of the government, what are your options going to be? This issue of redistricting is going to affect [the young generation] the most,” said Milian, emphasizing the weight of the Marshall students’ vote.
Prop 50 was officially passed on November 4. The question of whether this redistricting will be effective in stopping future attempts of redistricting from Republican lawmakers, or start a domino chain of redistricting, still remains.
The Texas redistricting revealed the Trump administration’s attempt for a stronger congressional majority. It also sets a precedent that Democratic states like California are also willing to create partisan districts.
While it’s a move that could make the Trump administration more weary over the next two years of office, it also opens the door to future redistricting for years to come, especially for California.