Common Forms of Gerrymandering in the United States

Keena, Alex; Latner, Michael; McGann, Anthony J.; Smith, Charles Anthony

Abstract

Gerrymandering is a form of voting manipulation whereby electoral district boundaries are drawn to produce a partisan or political bias in elections. In this paper, we study partisan gerrymandering in the United States to understand its undemocratic outcomes and how the design of election institutions can promote or prevent gerrymandering. We begin with a survey of the history of gerrymandering, with a particular focus on partisan
gerrymandering. We then consider the normative standards of fairness in democracy that partisan gerrymandering may violate. Next, we present a typology of partisan gerrymandering based upon the district maps drawn in California, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, and New Jersey for the 2012 elections. Using the partisan symmetry method, we estimate the seats/votes curves of the congressional maps used in 38 states during the 2012 elections. We find that partisan gerrymanders occur almost exclusively when politicians are given control over redistricting. This analysis implies that a political
designer, who wants to minimize gerrymandering, should not put redistricting in the hands of politicians.

Keywords

gerrymandering (3)voting manipulation (1)U.S. congress (1)political parties (3)

References

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APA style

Keena, Alex & Latner, Michael & McGann, Anthony J. & Smith, Charles Anthony (2019). Common Forms of Gerrymandering in the United States. (2019). Common Forms of Gerrymandering in the United States. Decyzje, (32). https://doi.org/10.7206/DEC.1733-0092.130

MLA style

Keena, Alex and Latner, Michael and McGann, Anthony J. and Smith, Charles Anthony. “Common Forms Of Gerrymandering In The United States”. Decyzje, no. 32, 2019.

Chicago style

Keena, Alex and Latner, Michael and McGann, Anthony J. and Smith, Charles Anthony. “Common Forms Of Gerrymandering In The United States”. Decyzje, Decyzje, no. 32 (2019). doi:10.7206/DEC.1733-0092.130.

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CC-BY

[1] Flis, J. (2014). Złudzenia wyboru. Społeczne wyobrażenia i instytucjonalne ramy w wyborach do Sejmu i Senatu. Kraków: Wydawnictwo Uniwersytetu Jagiellońskiego. [Google Scholar]

[2] Gelman, A., & King, G. (1990). Estimating the Electoral Consequences of Legislative Redistricting. Journal of the American Statistical Association, 85(410), 274–282. [Google Scholar]

[3] Gelman, A., & King, G. (1994a). Enhancing Democracy through Legislative Redistricting. American Political Science Review, 88(3), 541–559. [Google Scholar]

[4] Gelman, A., & King, G. (1994b). A Unifi ed Method of Evaluating Electoral Systems and Redistricting Plans. American Journal of Political Science, 38(2), 514–554. [Google Scholar]

[5] Grofman, B., & King, G. (2007). The Future of Partisan Symmetry as a Judicial Test for Partisan Gerrymandering after LULAC v. Perry. Election Law Journal, 6(1), 2–35. [Google Scholar]

[6] Grofman, B., Koetzle, W., & Brunell, T. (1997). An integrated perspective on the three potential sources of partisan bias: Malapportionment, turnout differences, and the geographic distribution of party vote shares. Electoral Studies, 16(4), 457–470. [Google Scholar]

[7] Haman, J. (2003). Demokracja, decyzje, wybory. Wydawnictwo Naukowe „Scholar”. [Google Scholar]

[8] Hout, E., & McGann, A.J. (2009). Liberal political equality implies proportional representation. Social Choice & Welfare, 33(4), 617–620. [Google Scholar]

[9] Kaminski, M.M. (1999). How communism could have been saved: Formal analysis of electoral bargaining in Poland in 1989. Public Choice, 98(1), 83–109. [Google Scholar]

[10] Kaminski, M.M. (2002). Do parties benefi t from electoral manipulation? Electoral laws and heresthetics in Poland, 1989-93. Journal of Theoretical Politics, 14(3), 325–358. [Google Scholar]

[11] Kaminski, M.M. (2015). Ordynacje większościowe i JOW-y. Kompendium reformatora ordynacji wyborczej. Warszawa: Wydawnictwo Naukowe “Scholar”. [Google Scholar]

[12] King, G. (1990). Electoral Responsiveness and Partisan Bias in Multiparty Democracies. Legislative Studies Quarterly, XV, 159–181. [Google Scholar]

[13] Lissowski, G. (2001). Elementy teorii wyboru społecznego. Warszawa: Wydawnictwo Naukowe “Scholar”. [Google Scholar]

[14] Magar, E., Trelles, A., Altman, M., & McDonald, M.P. (2017). Components of partisan bias originating from single-member districts in multi-party systems: An application to Mexico. Political Geography, 57(1), 1–12. [Google Scholar]

[15] McGann, A.J. (2006). The Logic of Democracy: Reconciling Equality, Deliberation, and Minority Protection. University of Michigan Press: Ann Arbor, Mi. [Google Scholar]

[16] McGann, A.J., Smith, C.A., Latner, M., & Keena, J. A. (2015). A Discernable and Manageable Standard for Partisan Gerrymandering. Election Law Journal, 14(4), 295–311. [Google Scholar]

[17] McGann, A.J., Smith, C.A., Latner, M., & Keena, A. (2016). Gerrymandering in America: The House of Representatives, the Supreme Court, and the Future of Popular Sovereignty. Cambridge University Press: New York. [Google Scholar]

[18] Raciborski, J. (1997). Polskie wybory: zachowania wyborcze społeczeństwa polskiego w latach 19891995. Warszawa: Scholar Books. [Google Scholar]

[19] Taagepera, R., & Shugart, M. (1989). Seats and Votes: The Effects and Determinants of Electoral Systems. New Haven: Yale University Press. [Google Scholar]

[20] Tufte, E. 1973. The Relationship between Seats and Votes in Two-Party Systems. American Political Science Review, 67(2), 540–554. [Google Scholar]

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