SUMMARY
Virginia’s Supreme Court has struck down a voter-approved plan to redraw the state’s congressional maps to benefit Democrats. It was a major setback for Democrats, as both parties wage a war of mid-decade redistricting. David Wasserman of the Cook Political Report with Amy Walter joins Amna Nawaz to discuss Friday’s ruling and the national context.
View the transcript of the story.
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Key term
gerrymandering — practice of drawing congressional district lines to benefit one political party over another is known as gerrymandering and dates back to the 19th century
WARM-UP QUESTIONS
- How would the new districting maps approved by voters impact representation in Virginia?
- Why did the court rule that the new map was unconstitutional, according to Dave Wasserman?
- Where have Republicans moved quickly to change maps following last month's Supreme Court ruling on the Voting Rights Act?
- What will be the impact on Congress from all the redistricting happening across the country?
- Who are some of the people protesting new maps?
ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS
- Do you think each state should get to choose how congressional maps are drawn with the goal of providing maximum advantage to the party in power? Why or why not?
- If the way Congressional districts were chosen was redesigned, who do you think could be trusted to draw fairer maps (that is, maps that are more representative of the partisan divides in each state)?
Media literacy: What details about elections and choosing districts was confusing or unclear to you from this segment? How could you find out more?
WHAT STUDENTS CAN DO
How was the Congressional map chosen in your state, and how fair is it?
The graphic mentions "Princeton's Gerrymandering Project." Check out the Princeton Gerrymandering Project by visiting their website and finding out more about the score they give to your state. As a class, discuss —
- Why did the site seem to give your state the grade it received?
- What was determined to be fair or unfair in the way your state assigned Congressional districts?
- What other methodology (strategy for determining fairness) was part of the site's grade for your state?
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