In the US House of Representatives, we elect representatives from congressional districts. These districts are drawn according to population, approximately 700,000 per district. Idaho currently has two districts in the US House of Representatives, and its districts are drawn by an independent commission to prevent bias.
Idaho is one of only seven states that has an independent redistricting commission. For most states, the maps are drawn by state legislatures themselves, which can lead to a phenomenon known as gerrymandering. Gerrymandering is named after Massachusetts Governor Elbridge Gerry, who was criticized for pushing state legislature maps containing a district oddly shaped like a salamander, which is how the practice got its name.
Essentially, gerrymandering is drawing legislative districts to marginalize voters of a certain political, racial, or social group. Often, they’ll draw maps so that voters are lumped in with people of other affiliations so that their vote isn’t reflected in the election, even if the party they voted for won more votes statewide than the other.
For another example, we attempted to draw a map that could favor Democrats in Idaho. The district labeled ‘1’ snakes around the entire state. Most importantly, it tries to pack as many Democratic voters as possible into one district. ‘Packing’ is a term that is often used when discussing redistricting. This would make the district more competitive, giving Democrats a +20% boost in that district.
A theoretical map depicting Idaho’s congressional district map as ‘gerrymandered’
Recently, the US House elections led to a narrow Republican majority. President Trump met with Texas Governor Greg Abbott and asked him to “pick him up” five more seats by drawing Texas Democrats out of their seats. The map was drawn and proposed by the Republican-controlled state legislature. However, before it could be passed, Texas Democrats fled the state, meaning the legislature didn’t have enough members to vote on the bill.
Gerrymandering is typically used by individual parties to gain an advantage. However, gerrymandering has also been used to marginalize demographic groups, particularly by race. In 2023, the US Supreme Court struck down Alabama’s congressional map, ruling the map as a racial gerrymander, designed to target African American voters. Legislators drew the map by packing as many Black voters as possible into one district using US Census data. This means people who live in both Montgomery and Mobile vote for the same representative in the same district, despite the distance between both cities.
Texas Democrats boycotted the vote for 18 days to delay the passage of the gerrymandered map. They returned soon after and the map was approved. They now plan to take the issue to the US Supreme Court, arguing it disproportionately affects minority voters. Texas in particular has a large African American and Hispanic population, which makes the issue of racial gerrymandering much more serious.
Intentionally marginalizing a demographic in elections was made illegal under the Voting Rights Act of 1965. The Voting Rights Act was among the many laws passed in the Civil Rights Era to address discrimination against minority populations across the US. Despite this, many parts of the bill have expired or struck down by courts over the years.
Meanwhile, in California, Governor Gavin Newsom added a measure to the statewide ballot in November that would undo California’s independent redistricting commission in favor of a state legislature-drawn committee. This means Californian voters will decide on the law in November of this year. Newsom has stated that this is for the sake of fairness and has stated he would push the legislature to respond to the Texas gerrymander with eight new Democratic seats in California. Other Democratic and Republican statewide officials and governors have stated their plans to do the same in their states.
When asked for comment, Idaho House Majority Leader Jason Monk (R-ID-22) said arguments against the Texas redistricting are disingenuous. Citing that most other states have unfair maps in the first place. House Majority Leader Monk believes the Texas redistricting is mostly ‘business as usual.’ When asked about the fairness in Idaho districts, Monk said he believed they’re fair and hopes that will continue as Idaho is expected to gain another district by 2030.
As mentioned before, independent redistricting commissions strive to draw balanced districts in a given state. Seven states in the US have independent commissions, including Idaho. Idaho’s commission is composed of three Democrats and three Republicans, all picked by the state legislature. House Majority Leader Jason Monk said this system can potentially lead to disagreements along partisan lines. However, Monk said he would not support a move to remove the independent commission.
Many different states in the union have begun to be involved with redistricting. Utah’s supreme court recently struck down a congressional map in Utah that unfairly split Salt Lake City voters. Maryland Governor Wes Moore has also hinted at starting a redistricting process in Maryland to favor Democrats in the upcoming 2026 Midterm elections.
As both parties begin gearing up for the 2026 Midterm elections, gerrymandering and redistricting will likely develop further for the next few years. More and more states may choose to redistrict and or appeal maps to the Supreme Court. Whatever the case will be, gerrymandering will remain part of American politics for years to come.
