Target State Update
By Saumya Narechania, Director of States
This week, map drawers in Texas and Georgia released their initial proposed congressional maps. Both proposed maps double down on 2011 gerrymandering in an effort to maintain Republican power — despite the changing political and demographic landscapes of the states. Put simply, these maps actively dilute the electoral power of communities of color. Keep reading for All On The Line’s analysis of these two maps.
Every time one of our target states proposes a map, All On The Line kicks things into high gear — turning around in-depth analysis of proposed maps, as well as tools and resources for advocacy efforts to hold map drawers accountable.
TEXAS CONGRESSIONAL [38 DISTRICTS]
☑️ Gerrymandered proposed map
☑️ Zero competitive districts
→ Despite 2020 Census data indicating 95% of the state’s population growth came from communities of color, this map increases the number of majority-white districts.
→ The map eliminates competition by packing (consolidating) and cracking (separating) communities — essentially predetermining which party will win in each district.
→ The electoral power of voters from El Paso, San Antonio, Austin, Houston, Dallas-Fort Worth, and their surrounding suburbs are drastically diluted.
GEORGIA CONGRESSIONAL [14 DISTRICTS]
☑️ Gerrymandered proposed map
☑️ Uses the same playbook as 2011
→ Georgia is an evenly divided state and a fair map would give voters an opportunity to elect a congressional delegation that allows for seven Democrats and seven Republicans. This map clearly tips the scales in favor of Republicans.
→ This map unfairly packs and cracks communities of color — resulting in districts that insufficiently represent a diversifying Atlanta metro area and actually decrease the voting power of African American voters in a majority Black district.
→ Despite public demands to adopt more fair and transparent guidelines for redistricting, Georgia’s map drawers literally just adopted the same guidelines as 2011.
OHIO CONGRESSIONAL [15 DISTRICTS]
☑️ Yet another missed deadline
☑️ Refuses to uphold reform standards that map drawers used as campaign promises
In Ohio, the state legislature missed a constitutional deadline on September 30 by not passing a congressional map. While we do not have a map to analyze, we can evaluate this less-than-stellar process: Ohio’s inability to adhere to a fair process is an insult to the voters who passed reforms demanding as much. And now their congressional map may lay in the hands of the republican-controlled commission that just finished gerrymandering their state legislative maps.
Missed deadlines, refusing to adopt transparent processes, straight up ignoring census data — these are — the types of obstructionism that map manipulators are using to intentionally fumble the redistricting process in Ohio, Georgia, and Texas.
It’s no surprise that when they do propose maps, the districts are gerrymandered — oftentimes at the expense of communities of color, the same people disproportionately impacted by voter suppression laws passed in states like Texas and Georgia.
We will continue to fight to break the cycle of gerrymandering and put power into the hands of people. Join us.
