Trump urged GOP-led states to redraw US House districts. Now other states also are gerrymandering

Trump urged GOP-led states to redraw US House districts. Now other states also are gerrymandering

President Donald Trump’s call for Republicans to redraw U.S. House districts ahead of next year’s election has triggered an unusual outbreak of mid-decade gerrymandering among both Republican- and Democratic-led states. Democrats need to gain just three seats to wrest control of the House away from Republicans. And Trump hopes redistricting can help stave off historical trends, in which the president’s party typically loses seats in midterm elec…

Gerrymandering poses threat to democracy

In 1812, a Massachusetts governor by the name of Elbridge Gerry signed a law redistricting the state’s electoral districts to benefit his party. The new boundaries were so oddly shaped that critics said one district looked like a salamander. A political cartoon in the Boston Gazette popularized the portmanteau “Gerry-mander,” which quickly became the term