Pennsylvania needs redistricting reform

JOANN MORSCH
Posted 6/21/17

We need redistricting reform in Pennsylvania. Current Pennsylvania law puts state legislators in charge of redistricting—the process of redrawing voting districts, which happens every 10 years …

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Pennsylvania needs redistricting reform

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We need redistricting reform in Pennsylvania. Current Pennsylvania law puts state legislators in charge of redistricting—the process of redrawing voting districts, which happens every 10 years to reflect population changes. (It happens next after the 2020 census.)

Letting legislators draw their own districts is a conflict of interest from the start, but there are many other ways it goes wrong:

• Legislators work behind the scenes with no oversight or standards for fairness.

• They use mapping technology and big data to profile voters, and use that information to pick exactly who they want in or out of a voting district.

• They accept money from parties, super PACs and outside interests, which all target Pennsylvania because we are a populous swing state with lax campaign finance laws.

• They can and do draw whatever boundaries will maximize their influence, minimize their accountability and keep their seats in office secure.

The result is gerrymandering, the practice of manipulating voting districts to benefit parties, not people.

Gerrymandered districts give voters less voice and less choice, and we get polarization instead of problem-solving in Harrisburg and Washington. Your vote counts less. We get fewer options at the ballot box. Politicians lose civility and can’t solve problems. Gerrymandering even hurts politicians and parties. Even well-meaning politicians can’t do their jobs. They can’t represent spread-out communities with different needs and priorities, effectively maintain offices across wide geographic areas, or do the real work of governing: solving problems that affect us all.

Gerrymandering also allows outside money and influence to control parties’ agendas, and makes it easier for extremists to gain control of the party.

The key change to advocate: appoint an impartial, independent citizens commission to direct the process—not politicians drawing their own district lines. States that have put citizen commissions in place have seen improvements in representation, competitiveness and voter trust.

To make this a reality, we have to change the PA Constitution. Bipartisan bills have already been introduced in the PA House and Senate and co-sponsored by a dozen legislators.

Support SB 22 and HB722 because they provide multiple safeguards for a fairer process, ensure a capable and demographically representative commission, and reduce the major political parties’ ability to manipulate district lines.

For more information visit www.fairdistrictspa.org.

[Joann Morsch is a resident of Starlight, PA.]

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