Civic · 6 pages · 12 min
Why the shape of a district matters
A district's shape decides which voters share a contest and which winner takes the seat.
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From the opening
The shape of a district is the boundary that decides which homes vote together for a seat. Change the shape and you change the electorate inside the contest, so the same voters and the same preferences can produce a different winner because they were grouped differently. The opening covers boundaries choose the electorate, packing piles up safe seats, and cracking splits a group thin.
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Inside
- Boundaries choose the electorate
- Packing piles up safe seats
- Cracking splits a group thin
- A neat line can still bias
- Where the idea stops applying
- A distinction worth keeping
Sources
- Packing and cracking
- Gerrymandered district boundaries