PA House Redistricting
I am Kathy Doyle. I live in Quakertown, Richland Township, PA House 145 since 2015. I have worked at some Fair Districts PA events and solicited neighbors to support FDPA initiatives. Election is defined as a formal and organized CHOICE by vote of a person for a political office or other position. The operative word is CHOICE. I thought the PA model of closed primaries was the way all elections were done until I moved to South Carolina. There I witnessed the difference that having multiple candidates made. To win, candidates had to address the concerns of every voter. Winners were held accountable by their constituents. Back in Bucks County, some offices had only one candidate running. No competition! That leads to voter apathy. Why bother? Without competition the candidate is automatically elected. And apathy works both ways. When districts are drawn in favor of a particular person, party, or interest why work to get on a ballot where the outcome is a forgone conclusion. Gerrymandered districts are designed to support party over people, incumbency and in these instances shows that “fidelity” is not to their constituency. When I asked my representative on the State Government Committee to support moving legislation out for a vote, his reply was, “I will follow the wishes of the Chair!” This after providing petitions and multiple meetings showing constituent support for that legislation. We need maps that are: fairly drawn to be compact, contiguous, and competitive, and open to public inspection and comment before approval. Besides being a wonderful civics lesson for students, fair maps could spark public interest, engender more competition for elective office, reduce apathy and ensure that each Pennsylvanian’s vote does matter.