Helping the LRC to make the finest districts
Closing argument: Helping the LRC to make the finest possible PA House and Senate Maps that will pass Constitutional muster The greatest threat to democracy in redistricting is partisan gerrymandering. The greatest weapon to end partisan gerrymandering is compact districts. Many of the districts in the currently proposed LRC maps have elongated non-compact shapes with unexplained jagged edges. These shapes make it impossible for the courts to develop and apply judicially manageable standards for drawing districts. We ask the LRC to redraw all non-compact districts in the House and Senate map in a compact manner. Then and only then you can make the most minor adjustments to accomplish other important goals such as increasing minority representation. Why Compact Districts Matter? In general, compact districts, composed of whole political subdivisions, restrain partisan gerrymandering by limiting the choices of map drafters in choosing territory based on voting history and replacing that discretion with historic, stable political boundaries assembled compactly. Compact districts also create an objective mathematical legal standard for courts to evaluate and redraw maps that contain overt and subtle partisan gerrymandering. Here is why: 1. Neither packing and cracking, nor distributing voters to advantage the drafter’s party is possible if all maps are required to follow county boundaries and larger political subdivisions assembled compactly to achieve maximum compactness. In brief, partisan-drawn electoral boundaries will be replaced by mandated historic county and municipal boundaries. 2. Compact districts tend to create a natural distribution of (a) conservative districts in rural parts of a state, (b) liberal districts in urban parts of a state, and (c) swing districts in parts of a state (i) with mixed voting populations (usually suburban areas), or (ii) that contain both factory towns and small cities. 3. Compact districts with smooth borders allow courts to easily detect partisan manipulation of district lines; districts with jagged edges and non-compact boundaries are prima facie evidence of individual or partisan gerrymanders. The proponents of non-compact districts can then come forward with a neutral reason for non-compact boundary choices. 4. Compact districts tend to keep minority communities whole and prevent the fragmentation of minority communities for partisan gain. Compact districts protect racial and linguistic minorities from having their neighborhoods fragmented by cracking or packing, thereby reducing their voice in government. Conversely, intact neighborhoods, usually formed by assembling wards and other municipal subdivisions compactly, usually preserve the electoral strength of racial and linguistic minorities. 5. Compact districts, based on county boundaries and other political entities, make it easier for citizens to (a) get to know the identity of their representatives, (b) visit their representatives, and (c) lobby their representatives. 6. Compact districts also encourage candidates to run for public office. Candidates will find it easier to walk districts, meet voters in town centers or shopping areas, purchase media, and drive to events where districts are drawn in a compact manner. 7. Compact districts with smooth edges allow courts to detect individual gerrymandering where drafters favor or hinder individual candidates or conceal punitive or retributive redistricting. 8. Compact districts in suburban areas and areas with small factory towns create a greater number of competitive districts and depolarize legislatures. 9. The United States Supreme Court in Veith (2004) and Rucho (2019) said it is impossible to create a judicially manageable standard to evaluate and judge partisan manipulated maps, but that is not the case. The Pennsylvania Supreme Court already has created and applied such a standard in LWV and the remedial map. But this standard needs to be honored and supported by the Legislative Reapportionment Commissions in its proposed maps. We, therefore, ask the LRC to honor the drafting criteria in LWV and thereby preserve the most important tool for fighting partisan gerrymandering ever articulated by any court in the United States: compact districts of equal population composed of whole political subdivisions to the maximum extent possible. /s Brian A. Gordon _________________________________ Brian A. Gordon Gordon & Ashworth, P.C. 168 Idris Road Merion Station, PA 19066 (610) 667- 4500 Briangordon249@gmail.com On behalf of Aggrieved Persons Jan Swenson, Nadine Boulware, Ellyn Elshanawaney, William S. Gordon, and Jason Magidson