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Indiana\'s Plan to End Gerrymandering.
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RETHINKINGREDISTRICTING
Re-drawing legislative districts tobetter represent people, not politics.
.I
lWhYis redistricting important?
Few things are more important to our democratic system than the way we elect our state's and our nation's leaders.That's why as Indiana's Chief Elections Officer, I'm starting an important discussion to shed light on the way Hoosiersselect officials to represent us today and tomorrow.
Many people aren't aware of redistricting - the process of dividing the state into sections of voting populations. Evenworse, national polling data from Pew Research shows that most voters don't care: 70 percent of those asked had no
opinion about how redistricting is conducted in their state. But reforming this process is critical to fair and accountable representation andmore competitive elections.
Without fairly drawn districts, incumbents or political parties can manipulate voters through gerrymandering - shaping political boundariesfor electoral advantage. In Indiana, this process has resulted in many oddly shaped districts that split counties and cities and ultimatelydiminish the voting power of many communities with shared interests. In addition, it leads to unnecessary confusion among voters.
Today, this is how you are represented in our state government. And I believe there is a better way.
To help advance discussion about redistricting in Indiana and ways we can make the system better, I'm asking all Hoosiers to startRethinking Redistricting by visiting www.rethinkingredistricting.comandjoiningtheconversation.This online resource provides aforum for constituents who want to have an active role in shaping their voting community and a voice in the decisions that will helpensure more competitive elections, united communities and a process influenced not by politics, but by people.
Regards, /7 /7~U~ ~ Todd Rokita IN D IA N A SEe R ETA RY 0 F STAT E
segments groups of constituents that are otherwise
united through county, city and school district lines.
This criterion seeks to avoid unnecessary division of
voters who share the same community and often the
same priorities, views and motivations.
People, not pol itics
In 2011, each state will redraw its boundaries for
state and congressional districts based on the new
2010 census data. It's our hope that new criteria for
redrawing district lines can help create a system that
is fair, sensible, easy to understand and that, most
importantly, serves the voters and not the legislators.
A fair and effective redistricting plan will use
community-focused criteria to represent Indiana'S
constituents. By concentrating on community, such a plan
would redraw lines through a new system designed to:
• Include no political data
Maps created without considering how particular voters
voted in previous elections will be inherently more fair
and less likely to contribute to gerrymandering and
other voter manipulation.
, Keep communities of interest together
Some district lines are drawn in a way that
• Create districts that are more compact and
geographically uniform
A more logical system to redraw Indiana's maps
would create more uniform districts. More than an
aesthetic preference, this action would improve
government accessibility and raise constituents'
awareness of their district and its distinct, local
issues of concern.
• Maintain population balance
Redrawingof district lines should be accomplished in
a manner that continues to balance population, but not
be so stringent that the other criteria listed are devalued.
Re-drawing legislative districts to better represent people, not politics. www.rethinkingredistricting.com 2
.1'1 How we got here
Ln Indiana and most other states, the state legislature is
responsible for redistricting every 10 years, after U.S.
census data is collected. Under our current law, the
officials responsible for redrawing district lines are the
very legislators already elected to represent the voters in
those districts. To many, that sounds like a conflict of
interest. But it's a system that Indiana has maintained
as the status quo for more than half a century.
Legislators have a constitutional duty to draw the maps,
and they should keep that duty. But for redistricting to
work for Indiana voters, our lawmakers need new, better
criteria for the upcoming round of redistricting in 201l.
The district maps in use today were drawn in 2001, and
are based on 2000 census data. Since those maps were
.rawn, Indiana's competitive field of candidates has
become more and more shallow, with candidates in two
out of every five legislative races running without major
party candidate opposition.
Maps That Make Sense _
We believe the proposed criteria will help us map a
sound solution to Indiana's redistricting challenges.
The maps in this brochure are a prototype of what our
district maps could have looked like today if these
criteria were used with 2000 census data. Beyond
merely being easier to understand, a 2011 map based
on the proposed criteria would result in voters choosing
their legislators (not the other way around), a widened
.andidate field, more competitive races and less
confusion for voters about who represents them.
What do these look -like to you?
While they may look like many different things
to many different people, Indiana's oddly shaped
legislative districts look like anything but fair
for Hoosier voters.
A OWings
B
o Two partially eaten pieces of pizza
o A spaceship
o A choo-choo train
o A dog with a club foot
o A mountain range
o A tractor
o A squirrel
o A llama
o A staircase
o A caterpillar
o A Pac Man maze
c
o
Re-drawing legislative districts to better represent people, not politics. www.rethinlkingredistricting.com 3
Ind iana Senate Legislative Districts
In this map, the districts follow already
existing political boundaries that better
represent communities of interest.
Re-drawing legislative districts to better represent people, not politics. www.rethinkingredistricting.com 4
lC:===--=::I_ Indiana House Legislative Districts _1I::::__ E1_
In addition to following county and
township lines, in this map, every two
house districts compose one senate
district, greatly reducing voter confusion.
Re-drawing legislative districts to better represent people, not politics. www.rethinkingredistricting.com 5
Indiana Congressional Districts
Re-drawing legislative districts to better represent people, not politics. I www.rethinkingredistricting.com 6
Re-drawing legislative districts to better represent people, not politics. www.rethinkingredistricting.com 7
•••
RETHINKINGREDISTRICTING
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~R E T H I N K~I:-::-N::-::G:--=R-=E'="D':"':I S=-=T=-=R::":"I'="C T=-:-::-IN-=-=G
lfiJE Problem 1: Communities split
Rockport, IN house districts
1
~R E T H JN K~JN~G~R~E~D~I~S~T~R""'I"""C-:::T"""IN~G
liffJ2 Problem 1: Communities split
Morristown, IN Congressional districts
Congressional
District 8
Congressional
District 4
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RETHINKING RE
2: Lack of compactness
Milwaukee 203 mi
Congressional
District 8
Congressional
District 4
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~---------------RETHINKING REDISTRICTING
liJ2Problem 3: Lack of competition
• 40% of all legislative races lack major partyopposition
• Half of House districts favor a party by morethan 30%
• Since 2001, Senate leaders opposed 5 out of16 opportunities. House leaders 19 out of 32times
3
9 Hamilton County House Districts
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(Also has 5Senate districts)
~--------------~-------RETHINKING REDISTRICTINGli9-Problem 5: Complicated election administration
• In Indiana, elections take 30,000 people to run 5500precincts - all with multiple ballot variations.
• The concept maps show that the number of ballotstyles can be greatly reduced.
- Johnson County could have 1/3 of the currentnumber of ballot styles.
- Elkhart County could have 1/2 of the currentnumber of ballot styles.
4
~R E T H I N K=IN-G~R--E--D""I~S--T--R-I--C--T-IN~GEJ.The solution:
Maps drawn based on ....
- Keeping communities of interest together (21 states)
- Compactness (36 states)
- Following known community boundaries (44 states)
- No political data for partisanship (12 states do this)
~---RETHINKING REDISTRICTING
lJJ. What Could Have BeenWhat Could Have Been
One of many possibilities)
5
..1§;R E TH J N K=lN=cr-R=E"'O-1~S"'T"'R"":'I"'C"'T~I--N~'G
lJ!). What Could Have Been
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~R E T H J N K-r N-G-R-E-O-'--S .••.T ••.R-'--C••.T-'-,N-G
What Could Have BeenWhat Is What Could Have Been
(Indiana House) (One of !l1any possibilities)
6
~-----------~~RETHINKING REDISTRICTING
What Could Have BeenWhat Is What Could Have Been
(Indiana House) (One of many possibilities)•.. -•
~-----------=---=~RETHINKING REDISTRICTING
What Could Have BeenWhat Could Have Been
(One of many possibilities)What Is
(In~i_anaSenate)
7
~~=---=~Ri2KI;h:~D~~:;~T~:ve BeenWhat Could Have Been
(One of many possibilities)
~RETHINK~IN~G~R~E~D~I~S~T~R~IC~T~I~N~GlP-
Added Benefit: Nesting
- Each senate district could be split into twohouse districts
- More accountability- Less confusion
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8
~R E T H I N K~I N~G~R:-:E:"":D~IS:"":T=R-:-I~C~T~J""'N~G
lffiJ. Nesting Example
Nesting Example: Fayette, Union, Franklin, Dearborn, Ohio, Switzerland and part of Ripley.~ ~ ,"'N'dM eMc..,p..•,' IAdm SeuetJryofSilIITOOd Rollia
.J§"_~ __RETHINKING REDISTRICTING
l5J1!. The Solution 1: Keep communities of interest together
Rockport - a single 1house member
1
9
~R E T H J N K~I N:-::-::G:--::R:-:E::-:O~'S::":T=R":"'~C~T~'-:-N~G
.liJ!. The Solution 2: Compact districts
Congressional
District 8
Today
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Would this be better?
~R E T H J N K~l N:-::-::G:-::R:-:E::-:O~'S::":T=R":"'~C-=T:-:"-:-N~G
lJi). The Solution 2: Compact districts
Congressional
District 4
Would this be better?
10
Current (9) Would this be better? (4)
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~ Hamilton County House Districts••..••• "Ffoon,.of'IkotI.r
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~-----RETHINKING REDISTRICTING
liJZMaps that pass legal musterThese maps are constitutional and legal.Created by an experienced mapping company.
- Follow the four criteria, including not using incumbentaddresses or voting history
- Incorporate nesting- Comply with the Constitution and the Voting Rights Act
Many other states have established criteria.We can't let this effort get bogged down byconfused legal premises or selected application ofthe law.
11
Why consider maps like this?
~R E T H I N K~l::-:"N=-=G:-=:-R =e D=-I:-::S:-=T~R-:-:I C:::"':::T::-::'I':'":'N-=GW 'n
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More competitionMore accountability for lawmakersEasier access to lawmakersEasier/less costly election administration
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--,------------~----RETHINKINGREDISTRICTING
•. -.--~-- --
12
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