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🇳🇵 Nepal /Crime & Justice

How redistricting and the Supreme Court have cut voters out of US House races

From Kathmandu Post · (5m ago) English Critical tone

Summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

TLDR

  • A recent US Supreme Court decision may enable more aggressive partisan gerrymandering, potentially reducing competitive US House races.
  • Experts warn this could lead to fewer competitive elections, diminishing voter power as winners are often predetermined.
  • The number of competitive House races is at its lowest point since at least 2008, with over 85% of districts rated as "Solid Republican" or "Solid Democrat."

The integrity of American democracy faces a significant threat as the US Supreme Court's latest ruling on redistricting opens the door to even more extreme partisan gerrymandering. This decision, coming amid an already intense national battle over drawing congressional district lines, risks ushering in an era where political gain dictates electoral maps, leaving voters with less meaningful choice than ever before.

The court’s ruling, which arrived amid what was already an unprecedented national fight over congressional redistricting, may usher in a new era of nakedly partisan gerrymandering ​that results in still fewer competitive elections, leaving voters with less power than ever, experts said.

— Reuters analysisDescribing the potential impact of the Supreme Court's decision on US House races.

Experts and analysts, including Reuters, highlight a stark reality: the control of the US House of Representatives may soon be decided by a tiny fraction of the electorate. With only 32 out of 435 seats currently considered competitive, the winners in most districts are virtually guaranteed before any ballots are cast. This trend, exacerbated by increased political polarization and the weaponization of redistricting, means that the voices of millions of Americans will be effectively silenced in the electoral process.

We are now in a cycle of gerrymandering wars. What used to be a cold war has gotten very hot.

— Justin LevittProfessor at Loyola Law School, commenting on the escalating nature of redistricting battles.

The Supreme Court's decision hollows out a crucial provision of the Voting Rights Act, which previously offered protections against the dismantling of districts with significant racial minority populations. Observers anticipate that Republican-led states will now target numerous majority-Black and majority-Latino seats, further entrenching partisan advantage and undermining fair representation. As Professor Justin Levitt of Loyola Law School aptly puts it, "We are now in a cycle of gerrymandering wars," suggesting that the situation is poised to worsen before any potential improvement.

I think it gets worse before it gets better. And I think there’s plenty of room for it to get worse.

— Justin LevittProfessor at Loyola Law School, expressing pessimism about the future of redistricting.
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Originally published by Kathmandu Post. Summarized and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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