Knowledge of

the Crowd.
Redistricting
Together.
 CHAPTER 1

Introduction
to the CROWD
Academy and
Redistricting

2
 CROWD ACADEMY Handbook Chapter 1. Introduction to the CROWD Academy and Redistricting

The year 2020 is a presidential election

year, and that event will capture much
of the attention of grassroots advocates
across the country, particularly advocates
focused on civic engagement. But 2020 is a
significant year for another reason: this is the
year that experts, attorneys, advocates and
communities will prepare for redistricting — the
process of assigning new election districts at
every level of government, that follows every
decennial census.

be an advocate
4
 CROWD ACADEMY Handbook Chapter 1. Introduction to the CROWD Academy and Redistricting

Redistricting has often been a closed-door color worse off in exercising political power than they had been under the
previous redistricting plan. Another major legal shift came with the Supreme
activity, with the technology and expertise Court’s 2019 ruling in Rucho v. Common Cause. The Court ruled that federal

jealously guarded by a few individuals. But courts would no longer be allowed to hear partisan gerrymandering lawsuits.
This means that the fight against partisan discrimination is now left to state
CROWD Academies and other initiatives are government to resolve, making grassroots activism for expanding state legal
protections more important.
working to ensure that, that will no longer be
The shifts in the law are happening at a time when voting rights experts
the case. predict significant demographic shifts and changes in the South. The United
States is becoming more racially diverse, and the census reports should reveal
Redistricting affects the ability of voters to cast meaningful ballots and new places where new districts might be drawn to allow voters of color to
redistricting ultimately determines the quality of their representation in gov- elect their preferred candidates. At the same time, other areas in which voters
ernment. After the return of the census data in 2021, government bodies that of color have enjoyed the ability to elect their preferred candidates may lose
elect representatives using districts will apply this information to adjust district population, and advocates will need to consider how to minimize the harm to
boundaries to account for population changes and shifts. These districts are those communities in the redistricting process. Finally, more than ever, partisan
used in the U.S. Congress, where districts include hundreds of thousands of players are litigating in the voting rights realm, which could strain resources for
Americans, to small town councils where districts group a few dozen individ- supporting grassroots education, advocacy, and community-driven litigation.
uals. Because redistricting affects who gets elected to governmental bodies, Energized and engaged activists in this arena will attract more resources, and
the decisions about boundaries also affect policies that these governmental the CROWD Academies will help to support the key work of those activists.
bodies ultimately enact. Anyone who cares about the way that laws affect
communities should care about redistricting. Redistricting has often been a With fewer protections available from the Voting Rights Act this cycle, ad-
closed-door activity, with the technology and expertise jealously guarded by vocates must approach redistricting community education and advocacy in
a few individuals. But CROWD Academies and other initiatives are working to a more strategic, efficient way. Section 5 provided advocates and litigators
ensure that, that will no longer be the case. a notification system to monitor and act when appropriate, on redistricting
changes proposed in formerly covered jurisdictions (voters in 16 states, mostly
The Southern Coalition for Social Justice (SCSJ), in partnership with grassroots in the South, were subject in whole or part to Section 5’s protections). Section
partners across the South, is hosting CROWD (Community Redistricting Or- 5 also bought affected communities and experts time to review and assess
ganizations Working for Democracy) Academies, the South’s largest com- proposed changes before they were enacted. Under the current system, re-
munity-based effort to organize voters to engage in line drawing. These Acad- districting changes in covered states now will go into effect immediately upon
emies will help guarantee a major public presence in the redistricting process. passage. This increases the pressure on communities to object to problematic
plans during the legislative process and, if unsuccessful, to litigate those plans
Much has changed since the start of the last decennial redistricting cycle in immediately after passage.
2011. Perhaps most important, the United States Supreme Court’s 2013 de-
cision in Shelby County v. Holder diminished the special protections of of the Moreover, without the notification element and the extra time afforded by
Voting Rights Act of 1965 that applied in parts of the South with records of Section 5, advocates must equip and support communities across the South
discrimination. Section 5, discussed in more detail later this text, was a ma- to act as the “eyes and ears” to protect the right to vote, and to engage
jor voting rights tool that blocked proposed laws that would leave voters of meaningfully in the redistricting process. The need for work ranges from de-
6
 CROWD ACADEMY Handbook Chapter 1. Introduction to the CROWD Academy and Redistricting

mystifying the process, to monitoring official meetings, to producing, ana- where they will be working. The program will roll-out in three phases:
lyzing and advocating for maps. There are simply not enough experienced
voting rights advocates to be in every community, but those advocates can 1. CROWD Scholars training and CROWD Fellows identification: in each
provide support — technical, legal and base-building — so that communities state in which the CROWD Academy will be operating, sponsors will
themselves can utilize the tools those experienced advocates use. And those conduct regional CROWD Academies (~30/40 attendees per academy)
communities that are already deeply familiar with the electoral systems and to educate and train leaders to be able to replicate redistricting training
how those systems are structured to serve (or not) their best interests, will be for grassroots communities. Amongst those Academy attendees, ap-
well positioned to participate in the redistricting process and advocate for proximately 1 attendee per Academy will be designated and trained as a
their own best interests. regional fellow.
2. CROWD Fellow training & support: Fellow(s) receive orientation, equip-
CROWD Academies create lasting infrastructure and an informed commu- ment (computer and mapping software) and build relationships with tech-
nity that is more equipped to interact with elected officials and prepared to nical assistance providers (map drawers, tech support and legal experts).
advocate for redistricting plans and policies that serve their interests. The CROWD Scholars will begin connecting the CROWD Fellows with interest-
infrastructure created by this program will enable communities to advocate ed activists they have identified in their “Redistricting 101” events, and the
effectively in the redistricting process at all levels of government in 2021 – 2022, CROWD Fellows will begin developing in-depth relationships with activists
and in future redistricting cycles. That is, the theory of change is base-build- in their regions.
ing and locally-oriented. Every community has the capacity to effectively 3. CROWD Fellows lead: With ongoing support from CROWD Academy
advocate in the redistricting process when provided the proper tools and sponsors and partners and CROWD Scholars, CROWD Fellows will imple-
support. This engagement will allow grassroots activists to fight for fair dis- ment regional community engagement support, working with community
tricts, to achieve their policy goals via representative government, and to hold members to flag problematic maps and advocate for fair and racially
their representatives accountable. equitable maps. The CROWD Fellows will serve as liaisons to voting rights
litigators and other partners with communication and advocacy expertise
Here is how the CROWD Academies will work: anchored by redistricting ex-
that might assist community groups in their efforts.
perts and in-state partners leading democracy organizing on-the-ground, this
program will first train CROWD Academy Scholars (grasstops leaders who
attend a regional two-day CROWD Academy). These Scholars will be trained
Finally, the CROWD Academy Handbook is designed to be a comprehensive
and equipped to conduct “Redistricting 101” trainings in their communities
resource for CROWD Scholars and Fellows. When CROWD Scholars go out
and neighboring regions. Additionally, out of the Academies, the CROWD
into their communities to prepare their friends and neighbors to participate in
ACADEMY Partners (SCSJ and its grassroots partners) and community lead-
the redistricting process, they should have the resources necessary to answer
ers will identify and train at least one Academy Scholar per Academy to serve
as many questions as possible. But beyond the Handbook, CROWD Scholars
as a CROWD Academy Redistricting Fellow in the 2020 – 2022 redistricting
cycle happening at every level relevant to their community. Ideally, CROWD
Fellows will be hosted at a partner organization with a presence in the region

8
 CHAPTER 2

Redistricting
Data &
Redistricting
Principles

10
 CROWD ACADEMY Handbook Chapter 2. Data Used in Redistricting

be counted
Data Collection and ­Distribution: The Census
Timeline
The Decennial Census
‘20 April 1:
Census Day
Collection occurs once per
Census data is collected every 10 years during years that end in “0” (e.g., decade during the year
ending in “0” of each decade.
2000, 2010, 2020, etc…), and for the current cycle, every household will re-
Every household will receive
ceive an invitation to participate in the Census by April 1st, 2020, also known an invitation to participate in
the Census held in December
as “Census Day.” Over the next several months, individual respondents submit of the same year.

their demographic data, and census takers follow up with households that
have not yet responded. By December, the Census Bureau delivers the results December:
Census Results
to the President of the United States for review. ­Delivered
The Census Bureau delivers
results to President for review
Between February and April 1st of the following year (at the absolute latest),
the Census Bureau releases the P.L. 94-171 Census Redistricting Data Summa-
ry File to the governor and legislative leadership in each state to be used for ‘21 April 1:
Census Results
­Delivered
redistricting purposes. P.L. 94-171 refers to Public Law 94-171, enacted in 1975,
By April 1st of year -1, Census
that “directs the Census Bureau to make special preparations to provide re- Bureau distributes redistricting
data to the states (a file
districting data needed by the 50 states.”1 Redistricting experts often will use known as P.L. 94-171 Census
Redistricting Data Summary
the shorthand term “PL data” to refer to this data set. File).

The P.L. 94-171 data include two kinds of files: tabulation files and geographic Spring / Summer
District Lines
files. The tabulation files, which contain the demographic data collected by ­Redrawn
the Census, are presented in four tables:
‘22 In most states, districts must
be redrawn in time for the
next election, meaning district
1. A count of all persons by race lines must be set by the
candidate filing deadline for
2. A count of the population 18 years and over by race the state’s primary election, in
the spring or summer of year
3. A count of Hispanic or Latino and a count of not ­Hispanic or Latino by -2: 2022, 2032, 2042, etc.

race for all persons

4. A count of Hispanic or Latino and a count of not ­Hispanic or Latino by
race for the population 18 years and over

1 https://www2.census.gov/
programs-surveys/decen-
nial/rdo/about/2010-cen-
sus-programs/2010Census_
pl94-171_techdoc.pdf

12
 CROWD ACADEMY Handbook Chapter 2. Data Used in Redistricting

3 Key Decennial ­Census ­Categories for Redistricting Main Levels of ­Geography in a ­Census
Geographic Files allow people counted in the Census to be associated with a place and are Geographic Files allow people counted in the Census to be associated with a place and are
structured as follows: structured as follows:

State
County

63 126 18+ Voting Tabulation District (VTD)

Place (City or Town)
Tract
Block Group
Race Combinations Ethnic ­Combinations
Voting Age Population (VAP) Block
An individual can select a single race or By choosing either Hispanic or Non-
up to all six categories. Hispanic, which refer to ethnicity, the Individuals who are 18 years and over by
total possible combinations is double April 1, 2020.
the race combinations.

Race and ethnicity are self-identified and self-­ Hispanic or Non-Hispanic since race and ethnicity census block, which is the smallest component for
reported, and they are chosen from the following are separate questions. Individuals are also asked all census geography. The main levels of geogra- Block
categories: for their age as of April 1 , 2020, which is used to
st
phy provided by the Census Bureau are as follows:
determine if they are 18 years and over, which is State → County → → Voting Tabulation District
• American Indian or Alaska Native then used to determine the data set referred to (VTD) → → → Place (City or Town) → → → → Tract → → VTD
• Asian as Voting Age Population (VAP). The decennial → → → Block Group → → → → → → Block
• Black or African American census form asks other questions, but these three
• Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander categories are all that is needed for the purposes The levels of geography most typically used for
• White of redistricting, and are used to create the four the purposes of redistricting are County, VTD, and
• Other tables included with the P.L. 94-171 tabular data. Block. Each level of geography nests perfectly into County

• Hispanic or Latino (Yes or No) each subsequent level, as shown in the simplified
The geographic files (sometimes referred to as example below:
shapefiles), the other part of the P.L. 94-171 data,
The first six categories correspond to a specif- are joined with the tabulation files in order to at- With the basics of census data and geography FIGURE 1 Nested Census Geography

ic race, while the seventh category, Hispanic or tach demographic information to a specific loca- understood, we can now move on to incorporating
Latino, refers to ethnicity. An individual can select tion on a map. That is, these files allow the people political data to enhance our ability to create and
a single race or up to all six categories for a total counted in the Census to be associated with a analyze electoral districts.
of 63 possible combinations, which is then doubled place. These geographies start at the state level
to 126 possible combinations by choosing either and go into increasingly finer detail down to the
14
 CROWD ACADEMY Handbook Chapter 2. Data Used in Redistricting

Political Data

Political data is also important in the redistricting process and is not provid-
ed by the Census Bureau. Political data is also not collected the same way
The types of
or by the exact same geographic units used to collect demographic data in
political data
the census. The geographic unit associated with election management and
political data is the precinct, and the census equivalent to the precinct is the
provided by What is GIS Software?
each state
VTD or Voting Tabulation District. The Census Bureau does not create the include election According to Brennan Center: “Geographic Information Systems (GIS) soft-
VTD boundaries themselves; rather states will submit to the Census Bureau a results, voter ware assigns political and demographic data to points or regions of maps,
special version of their precinct boundaries that nest within census geogra- turnout,
and will allow even less experienced users to draw district lines ­­­on-screen
phy. States are not required to participate, but most do since it is a preferred and voter
with instant feedback about the composition of the district.”
level of geography used for redistricting, owing to the fact that political data registration
is second in importance only to census data when drawing districts. The Cen- demographics
sus Bureau can then include VTDs in the geographic files that they produced such as age, sex,
linked with the demographic data. race, and party
affiliation.
The types of political data provided by each state include election results,
sus blocks. These geographic files are important, together, as is often the case when redistricting,
voter turnout, and voter registration demographics such as age, sex, race,
since they are usually necessary to incorporate the the accuracy and reliability of the disaggregated
and party affiliation. Some states collect the data at both the VTD and the
data into mapping programs. political data increases.
precinct level, but many do not, and this distinction will affect how the data is
incorporated into mapping programs, which will be discussed in further detail Political data can be incorporated into mapping The reasons for incorporating political data are
later on. programs such as Maptitude in one of two ways, twofold. First, voter turnout and election results
both of which involve disaggregating the data data can measure the partisan performance of
The process of accessing political data can differ significantly from state to
down to the census block level. If a state includes electoral districts, either during the process of
state. Some states, such as North Carolina, provide the data free to anyone
VTD information in its political data, the text file drawing them or analyzing them after the fact.
on an FTP site, while Wisconsin requires an official request, and charges thou-
can be joined directly to the census VTD layer and Secondly, Election results data, when combined
sands of dollars for a single statewide voter registration file. Other states, such
then disaggregated down to the census block with census voting age population (VAP) data,
as Maryland, stipulate that only voters registered in the state may access the
layer. If a state only includes precinct information can be used to determine the presence of racially
data and explicitly prohibits any commercial use, punishable by misdemean-
in its political data, the text file must first be joined polarized voting when evaluating a given juris-
or. The format of the data can also vary, but it is typically a simple text file
to the state’s precinct shapefile, and that shapefile diction’s compliance with Section 2 of the Voting
that is comma delimited (.csv) or tab delimited. These files require some expe-
is then spatially joined to the census block layer Rights Act. This topic will be covered in more detail
rience working with databases, but most people familiar with Microsoft Excel
and disaggregated. It is important to note that in other chapters, but racially polarized voting is
should have no problem opening and working with these files to prepare the
disaggregated data cannot be 100% accurate. the tendency of one racial or ethnic group to vote
data for use in mapping programs. Most states will also have geographic files
The accuracy at the block level is not high, but in support of a candidate (often, but not always, a
of their precincts that can be used to attach the tabular data to a specific lo-
when larger numbers of census blocks are grouped member of the voters’ racial or ethnic group) and
cation on a map, similar to how census demographic data are joined to cen-
16
 CROWD ACADEMY Handbook Chapter 2. Data Used in Redistricting

the tendency of the majority racial or ethnic group (historically white voters) ous paragraph, let’s say this particular jurisdiction has at-large, county wide
to vote in support of a different candidate and thus defeat the racial or eth- elections with no districts. If the racial composition of the county is such that
nic group’s ability to elect their preferred candidate. Because how a person 1/3 of the Voting Age Population is African-American, yet they are unable to
votes is private — one can never ascertain how, for example, each white or elect an African-American candidate that routinely campaigns for a seat on
black voter is voting. But, continuing the example, across larger geographies, the county commission, these endogenous elections could be analyzed for
social scientists can determine that predominantly black areas are voting evidence of racially polarized voting. An exogenous election, on the other
for a black candidate and predominantly white areas are voting for a white hand, is one that overlaps geographically with, but is unrelated to the jurisdic-
candidate. This is indicative that voting may be racially polarized. tion at issue. One example of this would be a statewide U.S. Senate election
with an African-American candidate running against a white candidate, but
Racially polarized voting can be assessed through one or more of the follow- the election results would only be analyzed in precincts in the county at issue.
ing statistical tests, in order of increasing complexity: Another example would be a racially contested city council election within
the county.
• Homogeneous Precinct Analysis
• Bivariate Ecological Regression Analysis While both types of elections can be used to test for racially polarized voting,
• Ecological Inference Analysis endogenous elections are considered more probative and often hold more
weight in court than exogenous elections. There are several reasons for this,
one being the possibility that an exogenous election, such as the city council
These three tests determine the presence of racially polarized voting by look-
example, may only partially overlap with the entire county, and therefore not
ing at precinct level voting patterns where a racially contested election has
all precincts can be used for analysis. The U.S. Senate example may have less
taken place. Again continuing the example above but adding some specifici-
probative value since it is a campaign at a much larger scale and may in-
ty, if there is a county commissioner election where 95% of the black voters in
volve different dynamics that are not necessarily representative of the specif-
a district vote for the black candidate, while 87% of white voters vote for the
ic jurisdiction in question. That being said, in a situation where there are few
white candidate, that is evidence of racially polarized voting.
racially contested, endogenous elections to draw from, it is often necessary to
rely on exogenous elections. For assessing racially polarized voting, the next
There are two types of elections that can be analyzed using the above tech-
ideal option is a local, exogenous election, followed by, regional or statewide,
niques, and those are endogenous and exogenous elections. An endogenous
exogenous elections. In practice, though, the options for elections useful for
election is simply one that occurs in the jurisdiction at issue in a VRA Section
meaningfully assessing racially polarized voting may be limited.
2 case. Continuing with the county commissioner example from the previ-

18
 CROWD ACADEMY Handbook

ly Polarized
RaciaVlO TING

87% 95%
% of white voters % of black voters
in a district vote in a district vote
for the white for the black
candidate candidate

20
 CROWD ACADEMY Handbook Chapter 2. Data Used in Redistricting

Redistricting
Principles

Now that we have a solid understanding of the data behind

redistricting, we will go over commonly used redistricting
criteria, which are as follows: equal population, communities
of interest, contiguity, compactness, preservation of
political boundaries, preservation of cores of prior districts,
and avoiding pairing incumbents. Adherence to each of
these criteria, except for equal population, which is federally
Keep the Power
mandated, varies from state to state in their inclusion as
well as level of enforcement (e.g. guidelines vs. constitutional
of Your Voice
requirements). One way to determine a jurisdiction’s practices
with respect to traditional redistricting principles is to see if
the jurisdiction has ever legislatively-adopted certain criteria
or whether there has been any litigation in the jurisdiction
that might address the issue. It may be important to observe
whether a jurisdiction has sacrificed compliance with
traditional redistricting criteria in the past in service of certain
goals, such as protecting incumbents or achieving political
advantage. In jurisdictions where compliance with traditional
redistricting compliance is not mandated or enforced laxly,
community organizations can advocate for more strict
compliance with these criteria if the community believes this
22
would best serve the community’s redistricting aims.
 CROWD ACADEMY Handbook Chapter 2. Data Used in Redistricting
1

n Id e a l Population
A
If there is a population of 100,000 5
people in a jurisdiction, and 5
districts need to be drawn, the
ideal population for each district is
20,000 people.

Equal Population

This criterion is mandated by the US Constitution and requires dis-

tricts to have roughly the same population, and the strictness of this
requirement depends on the type of jurisdiction (US Congressional,
State Legislative, Local). The first step is to determine the ideal pop-
ulation for each district, which is the total population of a jurisdiction
divided by the total number of districts. For example, if there is a pop-
ulation of 100,000 people in a jurisdiction, and 5 districts need to be
drawn, the ideal population for each district is 20,000 people. The
percent deviation from the ideal population helps determine compli-
ance with the law depending on the type of jurisdiction, with the three
= 1,000 people
most common jurisdiction types explained in further detail below:
24
 CROWD ACADEMY Handbook Chapter 2. Data Used in Redistricting

U.S. Congressional districts have the strictest requirements, with very few
District 2010 Pop Ideal Pop Ideal +/- % +/-
exceptions. All districts must be as close to the ideal population as practica-
1 733,499 733,499 0 0.00%
ble, which is commonly referred to as “zeroing out the districts,” or “zero devia-
2 733,499 733,499 0 0.00%
tion.” Using the example from the previous paragraph, this simply means each
district has to have exactly 20,000 people. If it is not possible to evenly di- 3 733,498 733,499 -1 0.00%

vide the population, for example, a population of 100,001 instead of 100,000, 4 733,499 733,499 0 0.00%

then 4 districts must have exactly 20,000 people, with the 5th district having 5 733,499 733,499 0 0.00%
20,001. Below is an example showing the population statistics for the current, 6 733,499 733,499 -1 0.00%
zeroed out NC Congressional district plan: 7 733,499 733,499 0 0.00%

8 733,499 733,499 0 0.00%

State Legislative districts have more flexible population equality require-
9 733,498 733,499 -1 0.00%
ments, which for many states means no district can have more than ±5%
10 733,499 733,499 0 0.00%
deviation, or the plan overall can have no more than a total deviation of 10%.
Sticking with our current example, this means the district populations can 11 733,499 733,499 0 0.00%

range no lower than 19,000 (-5% deviation) and no higher than 21,000 (+5% 12 733,498 733,499 -1 0.00%

deviation). There are some exceptions to this rule, and variation by state, but 13 733,499 733,499 0 0.00%
that will be discussed in more detail in the chapter covering federal law appli-
FIGURE 5 NC Congressional District Deviations (2016-Present)
cable to redistricting.

Local districts (i.e., county commission or town council districts) are similar to
state legislative districts in that the total deviation of the plan generally must Population Change 2010 Ideal District Deviation from Ideal
be less than 10% overall, but different states may impose different require-
District 2000 2010 Total Percent Population Total Percent
ments narrowing this. In theory, the 10% cap on population variance means
1 23136 24300 1164 5.0% 28025 -3725 -13.3%
the lowest population a district can possibly have is 18,000 (-10% deviation),
2 21961 26151 4170 19.0% 28025 -1874 -6.7%
and the highest is 22,000 (+10% deviation). In either extreme example, one
3 2262 28334 5672 25.0% 28025 309 1.1%
district could have either ±10% deviation, but all other districts must have
perfect zero deviation. It is more common that a plan will have something 4 21894 31349 9455 43.2% 28025 3324 11.9%

more balanced, such as the least populated district having -7% deviation 5 22168 31680 9512 42.9% 28025 3655 13.0%

from the ideal population, and the highest having +3%. Below is an example 6 21957 26334 4377 19.9% 28025 -1691 -6.0%

showing the out of deviation population statistics for Pitt County, N

­ orth Caro- Total 133798 158148 Maximum Population Deviation: 26.3%
lina local district plan prior to redistricting in 2011:
FIGURE 6 Pitt County Commissioner District Deviations (2010)

26
 CROWD ACADEMY Handbook

Communities of Interest

Many states include communities of interest as one of several redistricting One example
criteria that must be taken into account, although communities of interest from
should be defined before being used in redistricting in order to avoid manipu- Greensboro,
lation. Alabama’s Reapportioning Committee Guidelines, for example, broad- North Carolina,
ly define a community of interest as “an area with recognized similarities of is a group of
interests, including but not limited to racial, ethnic, geographic, governmental, neighborhoods
regional, social, cultural, partisan, or historic interests… .”2 Communities of in- in the northeast
terest are sometimes easy to define, such as neighborhood or media market
part of the city
that for many
boundaries, but more often than not, they must be defined with the help of
years lacked
the communities in question. Both kinds of communities of interest data can
any grocery
be useful, but the latter may help craft plans that better address the needs of
store (known as
a particular community. This is why community involvement at the local level a “food desert”).

your
is so important in the redistricting process, as it gives map drawers the local
knowledge to properly identify and keep whole important communities of in-

community.
terest. One example from Greensboro, North Carolina, is a group of neighbor-
hoods in the northeast part of the city that for many years lacked any gro-

your voice.
cery store (known as a “food desert”). It was important that this community of
interest identify itself so that line-drawers at every level of government could
understand how these voters worked together. Good-intentioned line-drawers
tried to keep this community unified in districts so as to not undermine their
organizing/advocacy capacity. Absent this local input, a map drawer is hard
pressed to identify these communities of interest without using proxy data
such as the following:

• Zillow Neighborhood Boundary Files

• School District Boundary Files
• Media Market Boundary Files
• USGS Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) Populated Places
Data3
• Decennial Census Data (e.g., Census Designated Places, Percentage
­Children, Median Age, Percentage Elderly, Percentage Female Head of 2
 ttp://www.legislature.
h
state.al.us/aliswww/reap-
Household, Percentage Renters) portionment/Reapportion-
ment%20Guidelines%20

• American Community Survey Data (e.g., Language, Ancestry, ­Educational 3

for%20Redistricting.pdf
 ttps://www.tandfonline.
h
com/doi/full/10.1080/00330
Attainment, Median Household income) 124.2018.1443477

28
 CROWD ACADEMY Handbook Chapter 2. Data Used in Redistricting

Contiguity
This geographic criterion is very straightforward: All parts of a single district
must be connected to the rest of the district. There are a few variations and
exceptions, which are described in further detail below:

FIGURE 2 Point Contiguity in

NC Congressional ­District 13 (2002-2010)

Point Contiguity In this variation, two parts of a district are connected only
by a single point. Some states allow for this type of contiguity, while others
explicitly forbid it.

Water Contiguity Some districts have multiple areas completely separated

by water with no connection by land, however this is generally accepted as
contiguous for the purposes of redistricting.

FIGURE 3 Water Contiguity in VA Congressional District

3 (2016-Present)

Satellite Annexations This occurs primarily in municipal redistricting, where

an incorporated municipality has one or more “satellite annexations” that
are not contiguous with the primary corporate limits. Including those satellite
annexations within a city council district is necessary and does not render the
plan problematic from a contiguity standpoint.

FIGURE 4 Satellite Annexation in Siler City, NC

30
 CROWD ACADEMY Handbook Chapter 2. Data Used in Redistricting

Compactness Preservation of Political Boundaries

In theory, the most compact district is a perfect circle, but in practice this is Most states have general guidelines on limiting the number of splits
an unobtainable (and generally undesirable) goal. What we end up with is to existing political boundaries such as counties, cities, and precincts. A 2017 very close state
constrained by existing geographic boundaries, population density, other This criterion is subordinate to federal law criteria such as Equal legislative election
competing redistricting criteria, and the map drawer’s intent. While there is Population and adherence to Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act, and
in Virginia had to
be decided random
something to be said for the “I know it when I see it” approach to judging a as such, it is implemented with a certain level of flexibility.
drawing of a name
district’s compactness, court challenges often use specific measures of com-
from a “hat” because
pactness that are mathematical formulas or ratios using variables such as As a practical matter, excessive jurisdictional splits, of precincts in
the district lines split
area, perimeter length, and population. To date, there are over two dozen particular, can create an administrative burden to local boards of
precincts, and many
measures of compactness; however certain measures are more common- elections by multiplying the total number of ballot styles needed for
voters were given the
a given election, and increase the likelihood that a voter is assigned
ly used, such as the ones included in the popular district building software, wrong ballot.
Maptitude for Redistricting: Reock, Schwartzberg, Perimeter, Polsby-Popper, to the wrong district. A 2017 very close state legislative election in
Length-Width, Population Polygon, Population Circle, Ehrenburg, and Mini- Virginia had to be decided by random drawing of a name from a
mum Convex Polygon. “hat” because the district lines split precincts, and many voters were
given the wrong ballot. It can also lead to voter confusion and create
By itself, the way an individual district rates or “scores” using any of these logistical difficulties for community groups and political organiza-
measures of compactness has limited utility, but when compared to the tions, as precincts are the basic building blocks for organizing at the
scores of other districts within a plan or other competing plans, evidence of local level. Therefore, it is widely considered essential to good gover-
relative compactness or non-compactness can emerge. nance to minimize these splits as much as possible.
32
 CROWD ACADEMY Handbook Chapter 2. Data Used in Redistricting

Avoiding Pairing Incumbents

This criterion tends to be popular with state legislative representatives who,
not coincidentally, are also the parties in charge of redistricting in most
states. Although motivated by self-interest, one argument in favor of some
incumbent protection is if the incumbent has had a long tenure in the leg-
islature (and thus may be an experienced and effective lawmaker) and has
strong ties to their constituents. It is almost inevitable that some incumbents
will be paired, as other redistricting criteria often are prioritized above this
particular one in importance.

Incumbency pairing can be used for nefarious purposes, even when framed
positively as “ignoring incumbency.” It can be used as a tactic in partisan
gerrymandering by pairing two or more incumbents of the same party in the
same district, thereby eliminating all but one of them in a primary. Another
method is to place an incumbent in a “safe” district of the other party, all but
ensuring their defeat in the general election. These both tend to be particu-
Preservation of Cores of Prior Districts
larly effective weapons for eliminating partisan rivals since in almost all cases,
This criterion facilitates historical continuity of representation for voters across a candidate must reside in the district in which they run, and the only way
multiple redistricting cycles. This is accomplished slightly more easily with around it is to move to a different primary residence before the filing deadline
state legislative districts compared to congressional districts since, in addition for an upcoming election.
to population changes, the number of congressional districts can and will
change for many states after each decennial census. For example, it is widely Additionally, ill-intended mapmakers may pretend to ignore incumbency but
expected that North Carolina will gain an additional congressional repre- then propose plans that disproportionately pair incumbents of color, forcing
sentative in 2020 due to population increases, and will therefore move to a them to run against each other and likely reducing representation of color.
14-district plan after two decades under a 13-district plan. However, it is also This nearly happened in 2019 when the North Carolina General Assembly
a criterion that can be used to argue against the creation of a new district proposed to restructure and redistrict the Winston-Salem city council, in the
that creates electoral opportunities for voters of color. The use of the criterion process putting all three African-American women on the council in the same
should be deployed carefully. district. That effort was defeated through advocacy.

34
 CROWD ACADEMY Handbook

CHAPTER 3

Analysis
of Maps

36
 CROWD ACADEMY Handbook Chapter 3. Analysis of Maps

Proportional Representation The United States

has never adopted proportional representation
Terminology systems as have many other countries, but be-
cause fair, community-supported plans may be
criticized for attempting to achieve proportional
When analyzing current and proposed representation, it is important to understand the

maps, several terms that community concept. Proportional representation systems are
commonly used for national legislatures with a
groups are likely to encounter should be parliament system. The number of seats won will
defined and understood. reflect proportionately the percentage of votes
obtained by that party. For instance, if 40% of
the electorate supports a political party as their
favorite, then approximately 40% of seats will be
Types of Elections won by that party.

Plurality / Majority Plurality voting is the most common electoral sys- Alternative Voting Systems These systems in-
tem in the country whereby the candidate with the highest number clude methods such as cumulative voting and
of votes wins. Some jurisdictions never require a candidate to obtain limited voting. Cumulative voting allows as many
a majority of votes to win. In other cases, where the ultimately suc- votes as there are candidates. A voter may
cessful candidate must obtain a majority of the vote, if no candidate choose to give all their votes to one candidate to
reaches 50%, election officials will conduct what is known as a “run- maximize that candidate’s chance of election or
off” election. In this case, usually, the top two candidates run against vote for as many candidates as they have votes,
each other in a final election to determine the winner. or something in between. In limited voting, voters
have fewer votes than there are office seats. For
In other, rarer instances, an “instant-runoff” could occur where voters
example, in a four-seat district, each voter might
rank the candidates in order of preference. If a candidate receives
be allowed to cast two votes, and the winners are
over 50%, that candidate wins. However, if no candidate reaches
the four candidates who receive the highest totals
50%, the candidate with the lowest number of votes is automati-
of votes. Systems such as cumulative voting and
cally dropped off, and voters who selected that candidate will have
limited voting may be advantageous to minority
their second-place votes added to their next choice. This process is
communities if they are able to galvanize around
repeated until a candidate reaches 50% and becomes the winner.
a select few candidates and the systems are well
understood and supported.

38
 Analyzing Maps
Currently in Place
Representation
One of the reasons why fair and community-involved redistricting is import-
Methods of Election ant is that such a process may ensure that a plan allows the election of can-
didates that advocate for policies that match the will and desire of the voters
At-Large This structure lacks any districts and requires the candidates to run
that they represent. Therefore, evaluating current and past representation
and obtain votes throughout the entire jurisdiction. Under certain circum-
or officeholders and their policies is important when analyzing current redis-
stances, minority voters may not be able to elect a candidate of choice in
tricting maps. The race / ethnicity or party of current officeholders may have
at-large elections.
been influenced by the configuration of the districts or lack thereof (i.e., an
Single Member Districts With this method of election, candidates run in at-large system versus a single-member district).
districts where only voters residing inside the district can vote. Under this
structure, care must be taken to ensure that districts are configured in a fair
manner that reflects the jurisdiction’s voting population, that do not interfere
or dilute the voting strength of minority voters, and are not constructed using
Identifying Elected Officials
any impermissible grounds. When analyzing current redistricting maps, research should include a back-
ground understanding of the current officeholder (you may also want to
Multimember Districts This method of election is similar to one employing
obtain previous officeholders as well). Information on the current officeholder
single member districts except that more than one candidate can run in a
can be obtained from your local voter registrar/board of election or online
single district. Multimember district systems can suffer from some of the same
at either the website of the jurisdiction, the county elections office or the
problems as both at-large and single member districts.
state elections office.

Hybrid / Mixed Systems Hybrid / Mixed ­systems have some representatives run

The information obtained should include the officeholder’s name, race/
at-large while others run in districts. These systems carry with it the advan-
ethnicity, party affiliation (if applicable), possible address, and winning
tages and disadvantages of both systems.
percentage in the past election (or multiple elections). Although the name
may simply identify the particular person, the address may allow you to
determine the residential location within a specific district. In local elections,
there is usually a residency requirement. Thus, the specific address indicates
the district in which they live and that they can legally represent. However, it
is not uncommon in some at-large systems that multiple representatives live
in the same neighborhood or similar vicinity.

40
 CROWD ACADEMY Handbook Chapter 3. Analysis of Maps

Another bit of useful information includes the race or ethnicity of the office- Finally, identify candidates who were not elected. Obtain their names and
holder. For the most part, ethnicity corresponds to whether the candidate their races or ethnicities and losing margins. Analyzing candidates who were
was Hispanic or Latino while race refers to the categories specified by the not elected may provide insight into whether candidates preferred by voters
U.S. Census Bureau covered in Chapter 2. Unfortunately, in many states, race of color are struggling to be elected in a jurisdiction or district. For instance, a
or ethnicity of an officeholder is most likely not available at any local regis- jurisdiction with an at-large election system (i.e., those jurisdictions where ev-
trar or state election website. In such states, the easiest way to determine this ery voter in the jurisdiction votes on every candidate) with significant minority
information may be to talk to individuals who are familiar with the race and population that rarely or never elects the minority candidate of choice, may
ethnicity of the officeholder or obtain commercial database data that may be experiencing legally-significant racially polarized voting (see Chapter 2).
have researched and obtained this information. In addition to one of these Thus, the jurisdiction may be a candidate to convert to a districting scheme
options, visually viewing city council member photos, for example, along with where the jurisdiction is divided into districts with representatives elected
their surnames may provide additional insight, but will often not be entirely from a specific district. On the other hand, a jurisdiction with a districting
reliable information. system that routinely elects fewer minority-preferred candidates than cor-
responds with that minority population’s overall make-up of the jurisdiction
Election results useful for map analysis are also often available from the local may be suffering from minority vote dilution and the districts may need to
elections office/voter registrar or state department of elections. Most local be reconfigured to remedy this problem. In each of these cases, redistricting
election offices or state department of elections maintain election returns experts would need to perform analysis to prove these occurrences. However,
that go back multiple years, if not decades. Election returns will facilitate the local community could be the starting point to draw attention to these
determining how long the officeholders have been serving and by what vote important issues.
margins they were elected. Once the race or ethnicity of the officeholder is
obtained, a simple analysis can also be made to determine which districts
elect certain officeholders of certain racial and ethnic makeup. This informa-
tion can be useful, specifically, if it can be associated with the minority com-
munity’s candidate of choice.

42
 CROWD ACADEMY Handbook

Does the community want

to draw its own maps or
Assess Current Leadership just provide feedback in the
­construction of new maps?
Community groups preparing to engage with the redistricting process should
ask themselves other questions, such as, “What good policies have been re-
alized and who was responsible for them?” Quantifying policies that help the
community can help define whether the current leadership is in line with the
community that the officeholder represents.

The opposite questions should also be resolved: “What bad policies have
been enacted and who was responsible for them?” Quantifying policies that This topic is discussed in detail in Chapter 6, but If, however, the community decides to provide in-
hurt the community can help define whether the current leadership is not in in short, one of the questions that a community put into the generation of maps, it should consider
sync with the community that the officeholder represents. or community group needs to answer upfront is whether it trusts the entity in charge of developing
whether it will develop its own maps or provide the maps and determine whether litigation is likely.
In either case, developing a table that lists the policies and rating them good
input into maps as they are being drawn by the If litigation is likely, having a competing map (to
or bad or even neutral can be an easy way to identify and surmise whether
jurisdiction or entity charged with redistricting. show that alternative plans existed at the time)
an officeholder is beneficial or not to the district’s or jurisdiction’s community.
If the community desires to draw its own maps, can be helpful if done in an organized, consen-
it must ensure that it has the capacity to do so. sus-driven manner and the map complies with all
That means it should have access to the proper legal mandates. Regardless of whether a com-
software & data (see Chapter 2) plus one or more munity decides to draw its own map, it must be
individuals with the proper technical, redistricting prepared to analyze and react to proposed maps
training, and understanding of plan development drawn by governing bodies.
skills. Also, the community should consider whether
it has the resources and time, as well as the ability
to build consensus within the community to devel-
op its own plan.

44
 CROWD ACADEMY Handbook Chapter 3. Analysis of Maps

Characteristics of the proposed map

Analysis of a proposed plan should, at the very least, consider how well the
map meets traditional redistricting criteria, how the map affects traditionally
disenfranchised communities, including voters of color, and what the political

Analyzing Proposed Maps ramifications of the proposed map will be.

Traditional redistricting criteria usually include aspects such as equal popula-

tion, compactness, minimizing political subdivision splits, respect for commu-
Method of Election nities of interest, and sometimes the effect on incumbents.

Characteristics of proposed methods of elections

Equal population is usually evaluated by comparing each district’s total pop-
When analyzing the method of election in a proposed plan, if any signifi- ulation to the plan’s Ideal Population (see Chapter 2). The closer the district’s
cant changes are being made to either the method of election or the type of total population is to the ideal population, the more strictly the district ad-
districts used in the plan, a community group should identify why the change heres to the one-person-one-vote requirement of the U.S. Constitution. Evalu- Traditional
is being proposed and who proposed that change. Lack of transparency ation of the total population usually involves viewing the absolute deviation redistricting
in answering questions on this front may be grounds for suspicion that the or deviation percentage of the district population (see Chapter 2). The criteria usually
changes are ill-intentioned. closer the deviation or its percentage is to zero, the more strictly the district include aspects
adheres to the one person one vote requirement. such as equal
Community groups should ask whether a change in method of election (i.e., population,
implementing or discarding a majority vote requirement) will make it harder Population deviations between districts are not always problematic, and per- compactness,
or easier for voters of color to elect their candidate of choice or for the juris- fect population equality amongst the districts does not mean that the plan
minimizing
diction as a whole to obtain representation consistent with its voters’ values
political
is good for a community or even legal. When looking at both the population
and preferences. Likewise, a move to or from single member districts should
subdivision
deviations of the individual districts and the plan as a whole, the commu-
splits, respect
be scrutinized to see whether it will undermine a group’s political power. nity engaging in the redistricting process should try to identify the reasons
for communities
There is no one-size-fits-all answer. In a jurisdiction that is majority Latino, for the population deviations. Slight population deviations that enable the
of interest, and
for example, a move from at-large elections to single member districts may creation or protection of a district that enables the election of a candidate sometimes
not advance Latino political power or the interests of the Latino community. preferred by voters of color are desirable and can be legal. Slight population the effect on
The answers to these questions can often be found in the lived experiences of deviations that allow municipalities, precincts, or VTDs to be kept whole are incumbents.
members of the community, or they may need to be sought from mapdraw- likewise sometimes advantageous. However, communities analyzing popula-
ing or political science experts. But they are questions that must be asked at tion deviations should examine the plan for systematic population deviations
the outset when critiquing proposed maps. that seem to favor a disfavor certain groups. For example, a plan where all
white majority districts are underpopulated and all black majority districts are
overpopulated districts may illegally advantage white voters. Similarly, a plan
where all rural districts are underpopulated and all urban districts are over-
populated districts may likewise illegally advantage rural voters. If a redistrict-
ing body cannot or will not explain the reason for population deviations, this
may grounds for suspicion and consultation with a legal expert.
46
 CROWD ACADEMY Handbook Chapter 3. Analysis of Maps

Compactness, which refers to the geographic dispersion or irregular shape of Just as with population equality, the first step in a community’s analysis of
a district, is a common characteristic evaluated during plan analysis. Com- a proposed plan’s compactness is inquiring of mapdrawers the reasons for
pactness measures are usually performed using a computer system that com- a district’s either lack of visual compactness or low score on mathematical
pares the district to an assumed perfectly shaped geography such as a circle. compactness measures. It is not the rare case that a district drawn to comply Keeping a
In most cases, the areas or perimeter are compared. However, compactness When analyzing with Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act and thus create new opportunities for town whole, for
measures also compare districts to other geographic forms, such as a rectan- compactness, voters of color to elect their candidate of choice is not the most visually com- example, may
gle or convex hull.1 it is also pact district. But this is not inherently problematic as long as race was not the allow that town
important to predominant reason for the district’s shape. Likewise, in states that prioritize to maximize
There are a variety of methods of measuring compactness (see Chapter 2) consider the keeping counties whole in districts, the irregular shape of counties may lead its influence
and most result in values between zero (0) and one (1), and in rare instances, shape of the with an elected
to some irregularly shaped district. This also is not inherently problematic so
the value exceeds 1. In both situations, the compactness measurement of “1” is jurisdiction or official.
long as there is no bias in which counties are kept whole and which counties
considered a perfectly compact district.
geographic
are split.
subareas such
Also, outside of the extremes, it is difficult to label a district very compact or
as cities, towns,
Minimizing political subdivision splits is a criterion that is designed to keep
precincts, and
significantly not compact in the abstract. In other words, it is easy to label a governmentally designated areas intact as much as possible. Political sub-
VTDs that the
district significantly noncompact if it carries with it a measure of .09 or under; divisions include counties, cities, towns, precincts, voting tabulation districts
district attempts
it is easy to label a district very compact if it has a measure of .90 or above. (VTDs), or other government-designated areas. In some cases, a local gov-
to follow.
However, in some cases, the low compactness measurement may be neces- ernment may not have created the area, but the federal government may
sary. An example of low compactness being necessary would be a coastal recognize that area for funding or other such reasons and identify it as a
district where the coastal boundary is very irregular, causing the district to census-designated place (CDP).
have a poor compactness score using mathematical measures. Another
example would be the inclusion of non-contiguous annexed areas (so-called While not an absolute criterion, the minimization of the splitting of political
satellite annexations) of a municipality that when included in a district would subdivisions may serve some important interests. Keeping a town whole, for
likely cause a low compactness measure. example, may allow that town to maximize its influence with an elected official.
In another example, keeping VTD or precincts whole may make political orga-
When analyzing compactness, it is also important to consider the shape of nizing easier and may reduce the chance of error in election administration.
the jurisdiction or geographic subareas such as cities, towns, precincts, and
VTDs that the district attempts to follow. For instance, if a municipality is The splitting of political subdivisions can be viewed by visual analysis; however,
1
 he shape of convex hull
T
irregularly shaped — that is, has a notch cut out on one side — one or more of could be thought of as the
shape that is generated if
the best method is to generate analysis reports using a redistricting mapping
the district was 3-dimen-
the district’s compactness measures that abut the notch will most likely be sional and a rubber band software. The software’s report would be capable of identifying which political
was wrapped around the
impacted. Or, a jurisdiction that annexed several irregular land areas or non- district. The shape that is
created from the imaginary
subdivisions have been split and possibly the population contained within.
rubber band is similar to the
contiguous land areas may also have districts that are affected by the annex. shape of the convex hull.

48
 CROWD ACADEMY Handbook Chapter 3. Analysis of Maps

As with other parts of map analysis, community groups analyzing a plan’s

compliance with this traditional redistricting criterion should not simply count
Plan Name: the number of split governmental entities: it should ask why political subdi-
Plan Type: 2018 House Plan Analysis A
visions were split. While it is often not possible to entirely respect all political

County Voting District District Population

subdivisions (i.e., split no towns or VTDs), a community group should carefully
examine the choices made by mapdrawers as to which political subdivisions
Split VTDs (Continued)
were divided. A well-intentioned mapdrawer committed to a transparent
Cumberland NC G1 43 8,715
and participatory process should be willing to justify all such decisions with
Cumberland NC G1 45 339
non-discriminatory explanations.
Cumberland NC G10 42 362

Cumberland NC G10 44 835 The communities of interest criterion can be one of the most ambiguous
Cumberland NC G10 45 13,257 characteristics of a redistricting plan, and will almost certainly be so if the
Cumberland NC G11 42 6,699 term was not concretely defined before the redistricting process commenced
or if the jurisdiction did not establish a measurement strategy for preserving Communities of
Cumberland NC G11 43 1,885
communities of interest. An unavoidable truth is that even well-meaning indi- interest could
Cumberland NC G11 45 22,658
viduals may disagree on the contours of a community of interest. Commonal- consist of areas
Cumberland NC G2 42 995
ities such as racial, ethnic, geographic, governmental, regional, social, cultural, where: English
Cumberland NC G2 43 28,836
transportation, or historical aspects of jurisdiction could be considered com-
is a second
Cumberland NC G2 45 4,451 language,
munities of interest.
Cumberland NC G3 43 6,976
agricultural
concerns
Cumberland NC G3 44 8,156 That said, the most popular and well-defined community of interest is a
dominate,
neighborhood or local residential subdivision. These areas can be geograph-
Cumberland NC G3 45 92 transportation
ically constrained and can be compared from one plan to another by the
Cumberland NC G5 42 19,481 connects
number of neighborhoods that are split. Also, neighborhoods usually contain
Cumberland NC G5 44 966 the area, or
common socioeconomic and even many times culturally similar voters. even poverty
Cumberland NC G6 43 647
issues are
Cumberland NC G6 45 9,810 Communities of interest could consist of areas where: English is a second concentrated.
Cumberland NC G8 42 2,297 language, agricultural concerns dominate, transportation connects the area,
Cumberland NC G8 44 16,491 or even poverty issues are concentrated. All of these commonalities may
bind these areas together as a rationale for preserving them within the same
FIGURE 3-1 Split VTD Report Example. Source: Maptitude for Redistricting Sample Split County Report
district boundaries.

Figure 3-1 displays a segment of a split VTD report for a sample State House Therefore, analyzing the proposed plan’s respect for communities of interest
plan in North Carolina generated by the software Maptitude for Redistricting. first involves reviewing relevant data for an analysis that usually comes in
The report reveals several VTDs that are split by multiple districts. For instance, two different forms. If geographically defined areas such as neighborhoods
VTD G10 is split by three districts, 24, 44, and 45. or subdivisions are analyzed, then a review of boundary data of neighbors
is needed to view and determine whether they have been split. While visual
analysis is sometimes possible to determine split neighborhoods, generating a
50
 CROWD ACADEMY Handbook Chapter 3. Analysis of Maps

mapping software report that lists the split neighborhoods is often advanta-
geous.

In practice, neighborhoods are commonly accepted as a community of

interest that should be kept whole where possible. However, if other com-
monalities such as language, agricultural concerns, or a need for organizing
around crime prevention might be significant, relevant data on each of those
interests is a starting point in the analysis—that is, one should ask whether
those interests encompass a specific geographic area. In many cases, public
input is the best source for determining whether a community of interest can
be defined and indeed exists.2

Then, when communities of interest have been defined and identified, com-
munities should analyze a proposed plan’s respect for using communities of
interests. This is often a visual examination where the map is examined to see
whether the community of interest area is included or not within a district, or Community One of the most important, albeit complex, assessments that must be con-
if it is split by a district line. Community advocates again should not be afraid advocates…
ducted of a proposed plan is the plan’s effect on voters by race or ethnicity.
to ask a mapdrawer to defend treatment of different communities of interest, should not be
Simply raising or even lowering race or ethnicity percentages for one or more
particular if the community advocates defined those communities for map- afraid to ask
districts does not necessarily generate a better plan. The analysis goes far
drawers at the outset. a mapdrawer
beyond the percentage of race or ethnicity alone.
to defend
Because many jurisdictions consider incumbency protection a traditional treatment
However, one of the first steps should be identifying the number of majori-
redistricting criterion, community groups should be prepared to analyze a of different
communities of ty-minority districts or the number of districts that are effective for minority
proposed plan on this criterion. If a jurisdiction disavows any attention or
interest… voters (that is, enables the election of a minority-preferred candidate even if
intention to protecting incumbents, community members may need to obtain
the minority group does not constitute a numerical majority in the district).
the addresses of the incumbents in order to assess how the map rates on this
The community should assess whether majority-minority or super-major-
criterion. Whether incumbency protection is a stated goal or not of the map-
ity-minority districts are necessary to enable the election of candidates
drawer, community groups should examine whether there is any potentially
preferred by voters of color. Sometimes some of these questions can be
discriminatory pattern to the pairing of incumbents (that is, the placement
answered based on community knowledge and examination of simple de-
of multiple incumbents in one district). As a general matter, a fair redistrict-
mographic data often provided with a proposed map, but there will be times
ing plan should be designed to ensure voters elect their representatives, not
when expert analysis is necessary to answer even these threshold questions
so that elected officials choose which voters are in their district in a manner
(discussed more below).
that ensure their continued re-election. The latter is antithetical to democratic
norms. But should a community decide to forcefully advocate for the aban-
Next, there are other visual assessments which center on race or ethnicity
donment of incumbency protection or non-pairing as a redistricting criterion,
that could be undertaken by anyone with some understanding of redistricting.
it should also ensure that if that advocacy is successful, the change is not
Specifically, community members can visually analyze a proposed plan to see
used in a manner detrimental to communities of color or disproportionately 2
 ichael Li And Yurij
M
Rudensky, “Rethinking the
Redistricting Toolbox”,
whether any precincts or VTDs seem to be improperly or discriminatorily split
disadvantage or a region or a particular party. Howard Law Journal, 2019
Vol. 62 No. 3 on the base of race or ethnicity.
52
 CROWD ACADEMY Handbook Chapter 3. Analysis of Maps

Montgomery,
AL
House District 77
Split Precincts E Zoom
Minority
Counties ­Population
House District (2012)
70 – 100%
Non-Split HD VTD
60 – 70%
Split VTD
50 – 60%
Census Block
NHBlack% 40 – 50%

0.00 – 25.00 30 – 40%

25.01 –50.00 0 – 30%

50.01 – 75.00 0%

75.01 – 100.00

FIGURE 3-4 Alabama HD77 Split VTDs along Racial Lines. Source: Tony Fairfax Map Analysis FIGURE 3-5 Example of Cracking of Minority Voters. Source: MSNBC.com Zachary Roth,
on HD77 for the Alabama ­Democratic Conference 01/09/14 (partial image)

Figure 3-4 presents an example of a Alabama state house district (HD) plan The visual indication of packing can also be quantified as well. Maptitude can
that splits a VTD along racial lines (Black). The boundary lines for the 2012 generate a summary report documenting the number of splits along racial
version of HD77 splits a VTD (1B Vaughn Park Church of Christ), shown with lines as well as the minority population that was split and placed within the
the dotted lines, and places practically all of the majority Black census blocks packed districts.
(designated by orange and red color) into the majority Black district (HD77).
Ultimately, a court determined the plan split multiple VTDs along racial lines Another visual analysis using race or ethnicity that could be performed re-
and constituted an unconstitutional racial gerrymander. Practically, this racial lates to “cracking.” Cracking refers to dividing a minority voting group into
gerrymander resulted in “packing” Black voters and limiting their overall two or more districts3 with the effect of diluting minority voting strength and
political power. Packing refers to placing an excessive amount of a minority rendering voters of color unable to elect their candidate of choice in any dis-
population group into a district and thus having the effect of diluting minority trict. In some cases, cracking will be observed by comparing a previous plan
voting strength in the adjacent districts. to a proposed plan. However, in certain circumstances, potential cracking can
be observed by viewing only a single plan. Figure 3-5 shows a congressional
Thus, packing was the outcome while splitting VTDs along racial lines was district plan in Texas that depicts the minority population divided (cracked)
the technique used to implement the packing and racial gerrymandering was into three different districts. The green, orange, and red areas represent ma-
the ultimate legal violation. It is important to note that one split precinct or jority-minority areas that are clearly divided into districts 10, 22, and 9 (district
VTD that happens to be split along racial lines does not necessarily lead to label 9 not shown).
3
 racking may be a tactic
C
a constitutional violation. It is usually a pattern of multiple split precincts or used to undermine the
political strength of
VTDs that indicate a racially gerrymandered district. communities of interest or
political parties.
54
 CROWD ACADEMY Handbook Chapter 3. Analysis of Maps

nomic differences meant that white voters were more easily able to and thus
more likely to vote than black voters. Furthermore, when examining a plan for
stacking, community groups should examine whether adjacent districts are
significantly higher in minority population than the potentially stacked dis-
trict. This was the case for Mississippi State Senate District 13. That adjacent
Senate District 13 contained a Black population of 70%. This discrepancy
between the districts may provide an indication that one of the districts was
configured in order to dilute voting strength.

Finally, as suggested above, there are times when analyzing proposed plans
for the race or ethnicity will require expert assistance. Political scientists many
times utilize techniques such as Homogeneous Precinct Analysis, Bivari-
ate Ecological Regression Analysis, and Ecological Inference Analysis to
understand race or ethnic voting behavior or patterns in a jurisdiction. These
FIGURE 3-6 Mississippi State Senate District 22. Source: Ballotpedia.org
methods can determine the voting propensity of racial and ethnic groups as
well as whether proposed districts will allow minority voters to elect a candi-
date of choice.
That said, similar to packing, the image alone is not necessarily sufficient to
Homogeneous Precinct Analysis, which is the simplest of the three, cen-
render a plan or a district illegal or unconstitutional. Communities will want
ters on the evaluation of precincts with a high percentage of a specific race
to supplement that visual analysis with determining the race and ethnicity
or ethnicity. It also has the advantage of being the analysis is most easily
percentages of the districts. Ultimately, to defeat such nefarious linedrawing,
performed by non-experts. First, the analyst identifies precincts that are, for
it may be necessary to demonstrate that an alternative plan could be devel-
example, heavily black or white. The analyst then examines if, in a racially
oped with a different configuration that did not crack the minority population.
contested election, the black candidate received large number of votes in
One other plan analysis pertaining to race or ethnicity detects the disenfran- heavily black precincts and very few votes in heavily white precincts. While
chisement of voters via a process called “stacking.” Stacking occurs when this analysis, in this example, is at least initially premised on the assumption
lower turnout minority voters are included in a district which has an appear- that black voters prefer black candidates, it also shows that a black candi-
ance of being majority-minority (viewing voting age population). However, in date performed well with black voters. It can be repeated for other racially
reality, because of the low voting turnout propensity, the district is not ma- contested elections. For example, Table 3-1 presents a fictional 10 precinct
jority-minority. For example, Figure 3-6 depicts the original 2012 drawing of jurisdiction. The table contains the Black VAP percentage for each precinct
Mississippi State Senate District 22 where “stacking” occurred. and the percentage of the vote for candidate A.

Senate District 22 was drawn at 51% Black VAP, however, when reviewing Using Homogeneous Precinct Analysis, the total votes for candidate A
Black turnout percentage, the districts was actually in the low 40% Black in would be divided by the total turnout for all precincts above 90% Black VAP.
turnout. The approximately 100-mile-long district consisted of Black voters In this example, three precincts are greater than 90% Black VAP (2, 3, and 8).
who were poorer on average than those throughout the state and were com- The total vote combined for candidate A in those three precincts is 626 while
bined with white voters who were wealthier than average. Such socioeco- the total turnout is 687. Thus, using Homogeneous Precinct Analysis, the re-
56
 CROWD ACADEMY Handbook Chapter 3. Analysis of Maps

Precinct's Black VAP% and % of Vote for Candidate A

100%
Precinct VAP BVAP BVAP% Turnout Cand A Cand A%

1 432 321 74.25 274 150 54.75

2 283 266 94.01 177 161 90.71 75%

3 513 501 97.62 313 285 91.00

% for Candidate A
4 502 76 15.13 331 45 13.48

5 312 24 7.69 232 35 15.07 50%

6 296 56 18.95 251 26 10.32

7 404 235 58.24 251 130 51.88

8 322 300 93.11 197 180 91.58 25%

9 397 163 40.98 254 125 49.18

10 548 117 21.35 368 72 19.65

TABLE 3-1 Precinct’s % of Black VAP and % for Candidate A

0% 25% 50% 75% 100%

% Black VAP

TABLE 3-3 Graph of Precinct’s Black VAP% and % for Candidate A

sulting estimated percentage of Black vote for candidate A is 91.09% (626 di- in the jurisdiction. The example determines the Black voters’ percentage for
vided by 687). This demonstrates black political cohesion, and if white voters candidate A by analyzing the precincts’ Black VAP% and candidate A %. For
in heavily white precincts likewise prefer a white candidate, this is evidence of example, Figure 3-3 graphs the same 10-precinct jurisdiction displaying the
racially polarized voting. One of the challenges of using Homogenous Pre- Black VAP% and percentage for candidate A as well as the linear equation
cinct Analysis can be the lack of precincts sufficiently homogenous (that is, a and line produced from the data.
precinct that is only 60% black or white is not going to be particularly useful
in this analysis). The linear equation generated from the Bivariate Ecological Regression Anal-
ysis is y=.9141x + .0111. The estimated percentage of the Black vote that voted
Next, Bivariate Ecological Regression Analysis is a statistical process that for candidate A is determined where x (or Black VAP%) reaches 100%. Thus,
can also estimate how races or ethnicities vote using aggregate levels of ar- the percentage of the Black voters that vote for candidate A is slightly higher
eas, such as precincts. Where Homogeneous Precinct Analysis may use a se- than the Homogenous Precinct Analysis at 92.52%.
lect set of homogeneous precincts (that usually have greater than 90% VAP
of the same race/ethnicity) in a jurisdiction, Bivariate Ecological Regression Ecological Inference Analysis is similar to bivariate ecological regression
Analysis utilizes data from all or most of the precincts. This analysis requires analysis, but uses additional data for each precinct. This analysis is arguably
two types of data to predict aspects of one of them such as turnout or voter the most complicated and sophisticated of the methods discussed and a
preference. Using the previous example of determining the Black candidate specific example will not be covered in this training document. However, a brief
of choice, in this instance, Bivariate Ecological Regression Analysis would summary of the process includes that the analysis requires the use of statis-
analyze Black VAP percentages and turnout percentages of “all” precincts tical software and incorporates the method of bounds into the calculation of
58
 CROWD ACADEMY Handbook Chapter 3. Analysis of Maps

the estimates. Essentially, by analyzing the data’s lowest and highest values for of seats that are won based upon the change in the number of votes for a
each precinct, the predictive accuracy can be theoretically improved. A final party. Equal Vote Weight computes the difference between a party’s median
step is used on all or a sample of precincts that combines the bound data and value district vote count and mean (average) district vote count. Declination
maximum likelihood statistics to produce estimates of voting patterns by race. determines the difference in how a party’s vote fraction changes between
districts it won and districts it lost. Efficiency Gap calculates the difference in
These racial and ethnic analyses of proposed maps can be used by com- the number of votes wasted by each party.
munity groups to identify lines that either intentionally or unintentionally can
disadvantage communities of color. The statistical analyses can be used to Each one provides some type of metric on measuring partisanship contained
determine strength of legal claims and can increase a community groups' within a plan. However, most likely, due to its straightforwardness and ease of
These racial Partisan
bargaining power during the legislative process. understanding, the Efficiency Gap has caught the attention of analysts and
and ethnic Symmetry
courts and is included in at least one redistricting software application (i.e.
The final point of analysis discussed is the analysis of the partisan charac-
analyses of estimates the
Maptitude for Redistricting).
proposed maps number of seats
teristics of a proposed plan. The *use* of partisan data or considerations in
can be used won based upon
mapdrawing may be acceptable in some jurisdictions and not acceptable The Efficiency Gap considers all losing votes by a party as wasted votes.
by community the number
in others. Some jurisdictions have prohibited the use of partisan data in the Also, any votes above the votes needed to win are considered wasted votes
groups to of votes for a
development of proposed plans. In contrast, others allow or even incorporate identify lines as well. For a given election, the Efficiency Gap method totals the wasted party.
partisan measures along with the other statistics of a plan. Regardless, the that either votes for each district for each party (see Figure 3-2). The total wasted votes
prohibition on the use of partisan data in line drawing does not mean that intentionally or for all districts are calculated next. The party with the least wasted votes is
a proposed map being analyzed by a community group should not be ana- unintentionally subtracted from the one with the most and divided by the total votes for the
lyzed for partisan effect, unless that community group is drawing an alterna- can election. The result is the Efficiency Gap which is usually expressed as a per-
tive plan that could be rendered useless because it was informed by knowl- disadvantage centage. An Efficiency Gap of 0% would represent perfect partisan fairness
edge of partisan data. communities of for a plan. The developers of the Efficiency Gap, Nicholas Stephanopoulos
color. and Eric McGhee, suggest that an Efficiency Gap above 7% could be consid-
There are several methods of analyzing partisanship in a proposed plan. ered a partisan gerrymander.
These can be classified into five categories, including Partisan Symmetry,
Responsiveness, Equal Vote Weight, Declination, and the Efficiency Gap.4
4
 raig F. Merrill, “An Intro-
C
Partisan Symmetry estimates the number of seats won based upon the num- duction to Partisan Gerry-
mandering Metrics”, League
ber of votes for a party. Responsiveness estimates the change in the number of Women Voters of North
Carolina, December 2017

60
 CROWD ACADEMY Handbook Chapter 3. Analysis of Maps

USER John Adams PLAN NAME Congress Plan C TYPE Congress Also, whether analyzing a plan standing alone or in comparison with another
plan, it is important to understand that is almost never possible (and some-
times not desirable) to maximize a plan’s compliance with ALL traditional
Efficiency Gap
redistricting criteria. Redistricting often requires prioritizing some criteria over
Friday, September 29, 2017 @ 3:35 p.m. others, and this consideration is discussed in more detail below.
Votes Cast Votes Wasted

District Republican Democrat Total Republican Democrat Winner

When comparatively evaluating equal population, though, the overall devia-
tion of the proposed plan is compared to the overall deviation of the current
1 52,779 86,130 138,909 52,779 16,675 Democrat
plan. Just as advocates were urged earlier to ask the mapdrawer to defend
2 93,619 56,965 150,584 18,326 56,965 Republican
the deviations in proposed districts and plans, mapdrawers should be asked
3 121,422 56,973 178,395 32,224 56,973 Republican
to explain why a proposed plan may increase or decrease the deviations
4 56,723 78,375 135,098 56,723 10,825 Democrat
when compared to another plan or the benchmark plan. While there is some
5 154,751 113,167 267,918 20,791 113,167 Republican validity to the suggestion that a plan with a lower deviation is a “better” plan,
6 185,550 117,574 303,124 33,987 117,574 Republican that assertion is not universally true. In some instances, each district is com-
7 154,017 95,063 249,080 29,476 95,063 Republican pared to another district and evaluated. Significant changes in a district’s
8 138,272 100,043 238,315 19,114 100,043 Republican population deviation compared to a previous or alternate plan can be an

9 163,472 105,146 268,618 29,162 105,146 Republican

indicator of a problem, and the mapdrawer should be asked to justify it.

10 139,664 66,955 206,619 36,354 66,955 Republican

Because Compactness, to a certain extent, can be quantified, a proposed
11 174,881 89,395 264,276 42,742 89,395 Republican
plan can be compared to the current plans (or other plans), to determine
12 106,462 220,378 326,840 106,462 56,957 Democrat which plan is more compact based on mathematical measures. It is best
13 192,883 152,322 345,205 20,280 152,322 Republican to compare at least three different compactness measures from each plan.
Total 1,734,495 1,338,486 3,072,981 498,420 1,038,060 Comparing only one measure may inject systematic bias for or against a plan
Seats 10 3 13 due to biases incorporated in each compactness measure. Two compactness

Efficiency Gap -17.56% measurements would allow for a split decision. Using a three-compactness
measurement scheme, two measures out of three would define a more com-
TABLE 3-1 Precinct’s % of Black VAP and % for Candidate A
pact district. Each district could be counted as more compact, and thus tallied
for the complete plan. For instance, the proposed plan had five (5) of seven (7)
districts shown to be more compact using three compactness measures.
Comparing characteristics to the current map/method of
election In addition, analyzing the plans’ overall range of compactness is also a useful
technique in comparing one plan with another. The overall range of com-
One of the standard techniques that is used when analyzing proposed plans
pactness is determined by selecting the lowest and highest value for each
is comparative analysis. As the name suggests, here, the proposed plan is
compact measure. Using overall ranges, a proposed plan could possibly be
compared to another plan (or multiple plans), which in most cases, is the
shown to exist outside or fit within the range of the compactness measure-
plan currently in effect (or sometimes called the benchmark plan). The same
ments of the current plan. If it fits within the plan, it will demonstrate that it
characteristics (e.g., total population, race/ethnicity, compactness, minimiz-
is a more compact plan, whereas being outside of the range indicates that it
ing political subdivision splits, and respect for communities of interest) listed
is less compact.
above are compared to the current or alternative plan.
62
 CROWD ACADEMY Handbook Chapter 3. Analysis of Maps

District 10 Before / After GOP Redistricting

Although it can be numerically shown that there is a difference between
compactness measures for districts or overall plans, in practical terms, there
may be virtually no difference for small variations in the values. For example, Minority
a district with a compactness measure of .36 is virtually the same as one that ­Population
is .37 or .35. In these cases, it not unreasonable to state that the two districts 70 – 100%

are relatively equal to each other in compactness. 60 – 70%

50 – 60%

But just as when talking about the shape of a district standing alone, advo- 40 – 50%

cates should remember that compactness is not the most important criteria 30 – 40%

0 – 30%
in redistricting or in comparing plans, but if there is a significant change in a
0%
district or a plan’s overall compactness, the mapdrawer should be asked to
explain the change.
Before After

FIGURE 3-5 Before and After Example of Cracking of Minority Voters.

Comparing political subdivision splits is a simple exercise of assessing the Source: MSNBC.com Zachary Roth, 01/09/14 (partial image)
number in one plan and comparing it to the number of splits in the other.
However, a meaningful comparison requires more. The decision of which
municipality to split may have a detrimental effect on communities of color, if
predominantly black towns are split and predominantly white towns are kept
whole, as an example. Additionally, the nature of the split matters. Some very
populous cities may almost always need to be split in redistricting plans. The
question there is not, for example, whether Atlanta, Georgia, was split in a
As mentioned above, multiple types of analysis can provide various indi-
State Senate map, or even necessarily how many times it was split, but *how*
cations of partisanship (i.e. Partisan Symmetry, Responsiveness, Equal Vote
it was split. Were the municipal splits made along roads or rivers or other
Weight, Declination, and the Efficiency Gap). Comparative analysis of parti-
geographic markers that might help voters understand where one district
sanship usually relates to which plan “balances” partisanship in a “fair” manner.
ends? To fully utilize this analytical criterion, these are the types of questions
For example, the Efficiency Gap provides a final percentage for a plan that
that must be asked of mapdrawers.
indicates partisanship. When comparing plans, the plan that results in the
Efficiency Gap value closest to zero percent has a better partisan balance.
Comparing plans’ respect for communities of interest requires an understand-
ing of the specific community commonalities contained within the dis-
Similar to the singular analysis of the proposed plans mentioned above,
tricts—both in how they are defined and where they are located. Analyzing
evaluating race is not as simple as asking whether a district’s race or ethnicity
neighborhoods or subdivisions or other like geographic areas can be a simple
percentage is higher or lower in one plan or another, or whether one plan has
exercise in comparing the number of splits within each district. But just as
more majority minority districts than another.
with political subdivisions, the question may be which communities of interest
were split and which were kept whole, and if they had to be split for popula- As an example, the 2001 North Carolina State Senate map had no majori-
tion equality reasons, how they were split. ty-black districts, but it elected between nine and ten black-preferred state
senators. The 2011 State Senate map had ten majority black districts, and
elected between nine and ten black-preferred state senators. But the creation
64
 CROWD ACADEMY Handbook Chapter 3. Analysis of Maps

of majority black districts was unnecessary as black candidates had been Weighting Plan Characteristics
winning in non-majority black districts, and black voters were packed into
Most of the time, it is fairly straightforward to compare the proposed and
these majority-black districts on the basis of their race and reducing their
current plan with each other and conclude which plan has the best individual
overall political power. This is a textbook example of why the 2011 plan was
characteristics. It may seem easy to conclude that because a proposed plan
not a “better” plan because it contained more majority black districts.
has a lower overall deviation at 7.5% than the current plan at 9.0% it means
that it is a better plan. Or that because the proposed plan splits fewer VTDs
In addition, once again, a visual inspection can provide insight into evaluating
than the current plan by splitting 23 as opposed to 34, the proposed plan is
a plan by thematically viewing race or ethnicity (usually using redistricting
superior.
software to create thematic maps). Figure 3-5 displays a comparison of the
2010 Texas House districts in the Fort Worth area on the left, and compared
However, what about proposed plans where some characteristics or redis-
them to the 2011 Texas House plan for the area on the right to show how the
tricting criteria are better and others are worse? In addition, what if the rea-
district lines changed in relation to the concentration of racial and ethnic vot-
son why a plan has a lower population deviation is the splitting of additional
ers. In the 2010 plan, Congressional District 10 showed a considerable amount
VTDs? In many cases, reducing the population deviation of a district may Because
of minority voters contained within the district.
require splitting political subdivisions (e.g., VTDs). Alternatively, developing redistricting
This can be seen by viewing the majority-minority areas presented in green,
a more compact district may mean increasing the population deviation of invariably
orange, and red, which are largely contained within the District 10. However,
a district. Likewise, the creation or protection of districts to comply with the requires making
Voting Rights Act may require the subjugation of some traditional redistrict- some trade-
the 2011 plan divided these majority-minority areas into three separate dis-
ing criteria. Therefore, there may be justification for why a particular charac- offs, community
tricts (Congressional Districts 9, 10, and 22).
teristic of a proposed plan seems worse than the current plan, or vice versa. groups
This tradeoff complicates comparing plan characteristics or redistricting engaged in the
criteria with another plan.
redistricting
process should
Because redistricting invariably requires making some trade-offs, community be prepared
groups engaged in the redistricting process should be prepared to decide
to decide and
explain which
and explain which redistricting criteria are more important to them. If there
redistricting
are state or local laws prioritizing some criteria, the community group may
criteria are
not be completely unrestricted in its decision-making on this front. Compli-
more important
ance with federal law will always supersede compliance with state law/guide- to them.
lines and non-mandatory redistricting criteria. Likewise, compliance with state
law/guidelines will supersede compliance with non-mandatory redistricting
criteria. Nonetheless, it is still important for communities organizing around
redistricting in order to analyze and critique proposed maps to have frank
discussions about which redistricting criteria are the most important to those
communities.

66
 CHAPTER 4

Federal Law
Governing
Redistricting

68
 CROWD ACADEMY Handbook Chapter 4. Federal Law Governing Redistricting

Did You Know?

One Person 1962 ‘64 ‘64 ‘73 ‘83 2004 ‘16

One Vote Baker v. Carr, Wesberry v. Reynolds v. Gaffney v. Brown v. Larios v. Cox, Harris v.
A series of cases that 369 U.S. 186 Sanders, 376 Sims, 377 U.S. ­Cummings, ­Thomson, 462 300 F. Supp. Ariz. Indep.
established this criterion as the
U.S. 1 533 412 U.S. 735 U.S. 835 2d 1320 (N.D. ­Redistricting
law of the land.
Ga. 2004) af- Comm’n, 136
firmed by Cox S. Ct. 1301
v. Larios, 542
U.S. 947
(2004)

One person one vote (OPOV) is the principle that the Equal Protection Clause  lacks Law Dictionary, at
B 369 U.S. 186, 237 (1962).
While state legislators in rural districts “had no interest in redistricting them-
1 8

1262 (10th ed. 2014) 9

372 U.S. 368, 381 (1963).
of the United States Constitution requires legislative voting districts to have  ttps://constitutioncenter.
h
selves out of office (or out of power),” in 1962, the United States Supreme
2

org/blog/constitution-
10
 eynolds, 377 U. S. 53, 568
R
check-what-does-one-per- (1964).
about the same population.1 It is the basic understanding in our country son-one-vote-mean-now/ 11
 ttps://scholarship.law.
h Court concluded in Baker v. Carr that the unequal districts resulting from the
3
See Evenwel v. Abbott, 136 ufl.edu/cgi/viewcontent.
that each person who casts a vote is equal to every other voter and that all S. Ct. 1120, 1132 (2016) The cgi?article=1340&context=-
flr at 1847. Tennessee legislature’s refusal to reapportion its seats in the face of large
United States Supreme
Court has acknowledged
votes should thus carry the same weight. “It is essential to the core theory of that maps can be drawn population shifts gave rise to a justiciable (or judicially permissible) lawsuit
based on the total popula-
a democracy, that the people rule, and do so with equal political authority.”2 tion which includes those
that don’t vote. “Nonvoters
under the Equal Protection Clause.8 The following year, the Court established
have an important stake
Following this principle is essential to achieving a constitutional result when in many policy debates its basic standard in Gray v. Sanders: “[t]he conception of political equali-
— children, their parents,
redrawing any electoral map.3 “The primary consequence of the rule has been even their grandparents, for
example, have a stake in
ty from the Declaration of Independence, to Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address,
a strong public-education
its protection of the individual voter, but it has also provided one mechanism system — and in receiving to the Fifteenth, Seventeenth, and Nineteenth Amendments can mean
constituent services,
for identifying and curtailing discrimination against cognizable groups of such as help navigating
public-benefits bureaucra- only one thing — one person, one vote.”9 Subsequently, the Supreme Court
cies … total-population
voters.”4 apportionment promotes determined that “an individual’s right to vote for State legislators is unconsti-
equitable and effective
representation.”
tutionally impaired when its weight is in a substantial fashion diluted when
4
 ttps://definitions.uslegal.
h
Although one person one vote didn’t crystalize until the 1960s, proportional com/o/one-person-one-
vote-rule/ compared with votes of citizens living on other parts of the State.”10
representation with respect to the power of states was “a benchmark for de- 5
 RTICLE:THE FALSE PROM-
A
ISE OF ONE PERSON, ONE
VOTE, 102 Mich. L. Rev.
mocracy at the national level as early as the late eighteenth and nineteenth 213, 218 Today, courts will consider how much voting districts differ from the ideal
6
Id.
centuries.”5 For instance, our Nation’s history suggests that “the Framers in- 7
Id.
population for each particular district. The maximum deviation (a special
tended members of the House of Representatives — the only popularly elect- measure of this difference) is the range by which the most overpopulated
ed federal office at the time — to be elected by people with equally weighted constituency differs from the most underpopulated constituency in the same
votes.” Nevertheless, over time, unconstitutional boundaries have maximized
6
state.11 For instance, if the largest district is two percent larger than the ideal
the political strength of rural voters while simultaneously diluting the power of number of voters (if each district had exactly the same number of people)
the urban electorate’s vote. 7
and the smallest district is two percent smaller, the overall range or maximum

70
 CROWD ACADEMY Handbook Chapter 4. Federal Law Governing Redistricting

population deviation is four percent.12 The United States Supreme Court uses
different standards for congressional districts versus state and local plans.
Federal law requires that congressional districts be as nearly equal in popu-
lation as practicable; state and local plans, on the other hand, are generally
allowed to deviate up to ten percent from the ideal population size. The court
has established that state level redistricting plans with a maximum popula-
tion deviation under 10% falls within the category of minor deviations.13 Chal-
lenges to these plans are rarely successful.14 “A plan with a higher maximum
deviation creates a prima facie case of discrimination and therefore must be
justified by the State.”15

one vote
In many instances achieving equal population may be impossible. Howev- 12
Id.
13
 ee, e. g., Connor v. Finch, 431
S
er, the OPOV standard permits limited population differences that are un- U.S. 407, 418 (1977); White v.
Regester, 412 U.S. 755, 764
avoidable after there has been a good-faith effort by line drawers to achieve (1973).
14
 arris v. Ariz. Indep. Redis-
H
absolute equality. 16 The standard can also give way in order to make districts tricting Comm’n, 136 S. Ct.
1301, 1307 (2016).

more politically fair.17 The United States Supreme Court has recognized that 15
 arios v. Cox, 300 F. Supp.
L
2d 1320, 1340 (N.D. Ga.
2004) (internal citations
“[p]olitics and political considerations are inseparable from districting and omitted).
16
 affney v. Cummings, 412
G
apportionment.”18 Valid considerations include, maintaining the integrity of U.S. 735, 741, 2325 (1973).
17
Id.
various political subdivisions, providing for compact districts of contiguous 18
Id. at 752-53.

territory, preserving the cores of prior districts, and avoiding incumbent pair- 19
 rown v. Thomson, 462 U.S.
B
835, 842 (1983); Larios, 300
F. Supp. 2d at 1337-38.
ings.19 These other considerations must be applied in a consistent non-dis- 20
Larios, 300 F. Supp. 2d at
1331.
criminatory manner. 20
21
 bate v. Mundt, 403 U.S. 182,
A
185 (1971).
22
 ahan v. Howell, 410 U.S.
M
The Supreme Court has acknowledged the value of maintaining political 315, 317 (1973).
23
 hapman v Meir, 420 U.S. 1
C
subdivisions such as towns, counties and cities. Addressing the preservation of (1975); Kilgarlin v. Hill, 386
U.S. 120 (1967).

towns regarding the redistricting of a county legislature, the Court explained  arios, 300 F. Supp. 2d at
L
24

1337-38.

that the “needs of a local community as a whole may sometimes justify

departures from strict equality.”21 It has also upheld a plan with relatively
high standard deviations but that also have carefully drawn districts to avoid
cross-city and county boundaries.22 Respecting existing boundaries may lead
to higher standard deviations, but was nonetheless permissible because it
served the legitimate policy interest of keeping local communities whole. On
the other hand, the Court has rejected plans with high deviations that failed
to show that policies were in place to support political boundaries.23 “[W]here
population deviations are not supported by such legitimate interests but,
rather, are tainted by arbitrariness or discrimination, they cannot withstand
constitutional scrutiny” and will be found unlawful.24

72
 CROWD ACADEMY Handbook Chapter 4. Federal Law Governing Redistricting

Intentional Discrimination
sequence of events may also reveal the purpose of the challenged action.31 In
addition, “departures from normal procedural sequences or from substantive
considerations usually relied on in the past” can be indicators of intentional
“The central purpose of the Equal Protection discrimination. Contemporary statements of decision makers may be exam-
ined, and “[i]n some extraordinary instances the members might be called
Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment is the to the stand at trial to testify concerning the purpose of the official action,
prevention of official conduct discriminating on although even then such testimony frequently will be barred by privilege.”32
Although
the basis of race.” 25
evidence of The totality of the circumstances approach is also probative of intent when
discriminatory the governmental actor has a choice between two alternative plans, one less
The Reconstruction Congress framed this provision so that public policy does
impact is discriminatory than the other.33 “If the actor chooses the more discriminato-
not discriminate against citizens, who are entitled to full and equal enjoyment
relevant, it is not ry alternative, the choice itself can be considered one of the specific events
of rights. Intentional discrimination (whether based on race or other specific the touchstone demonstrative of intent, and in most situations the choice will represent a
legal categories) violates this principle. Although evidence of discriminatory of the kind of departure from the norm.”34 Other relevant circumstantial factors include:
impact is relevant, it is not the touchstone of the kind of discrimination forbid- discrimination
whether African Americans have ever been elected in the county in which 31
Id.
den by the Constitution. Standing alone, it does not prove a violation of law.26 forbidden by the 32
 ill. of Arlington Heights v.
V
blacks were a majority of the population but a minority of registered voters; Metro. Hous. Dev. Corp., 429
Instead, the law or official act must reflect an unjustified purpose to classify Constitution. U.S. 252, 268 (1977)
any showing of systemic exclusion of African Americans from the political pro- 33
Id. at 124.
people based upon race based for a plaintiff to find relief.27 34
Id. at 124.
cess; educational segregation and discrimination, combined with continued 25
 ashington v. Davis, 426
W
U.S. 229, 239 (1976).
Invidious discrimination (the term for these illegal classifications) is often unresponsiveness of elected officials to the needs of the African American 26
Id. at 242.

community can indicate the presence of discriminatory motivation. 35 Id. at 239.

27

inferred from a review of the relevant facts.28 One significant factor is whether 28
Id. at 242.
 ttps://law.justia.com/con-
h
the effect of the law or government action bears more heavily on one race
29

stitution/us/amendment-
The United States Supreme Court has determined that a plaintiff is not 14/06-equal-protection-of-
than another. “Impact provides a starting point and “[s]ometimes a clear the-laws.html
required to prove the challenged action was based completely on racially 30
 ttps://scholarlycommons.
h
pattern, unexplainable on grounds other than race, emerges from the effect law.wlu.edu/cgi/viewcon-
tent.cgi?article=2745&con-
 ashington v. Davis, 426
W
discriminatory reasons.36 In fact, legislative or administrative bodies gener-
25

U.S. 229, 239 (1976). text=wlulr at 122

of the state action even when the governing legislation appears neutral on its Id.
Id. at 242.
ally balance numerous competing considerations.37 This certainly rings true
26 31

face.” In the absence of such a stark pattern, a court will investigate other
29 27
Id. at 239. 32
CITE
28
Id. at 242. for redistricting plans where factors other than race including, compactness, 33
Id. at 124.
factors such as the “historical background of the decision,” especially if there 29
 ttps://law.justia.com/con-
h 34
Id. at 124.
stitution/us/amendment- contiguity, annexed political subdivisions, and communities of interest are Id. at 623-24.
is a series of official discriminatory actions. “This evidence becomes signifi-
35
14/06-equal-protection-of-
the-laws.html
typically taken into consideration. If there is proof of a discriminatory purpose Washington, 426 U.S. at 267.
36

cant when the challenged decision was not made with an apparent discrim- 30
 ttps://scholarlycommons.
h 37
Id.
law.wlu.edu/cgi/viewcon-
tent.cgi?article=2745&con- as a motivating factor, deference is no longer given to the redistricting plan.38 38
Id.
inatory purpose, yet a clear disproportionate impact results.”30 The specific text=wlulr at 122

74
 CROWD ACADEMY Handbook Chapter 4. Federal Law Governing Redistricting

1976 ‘77 ‘80 ‘82

Intentional Racial
­Discrimination

14th AR TmeC nA dS ment

Washington Village of Mobile v. Rogers v.
v. Davis, 426 ­Arlington ­Bolden, 446 Lodge, 458
COU ES U.S. 229 Heights v. U.S. 55 U.S. 613
­Metropolitan
Housing Dev.
Corp., 429 U.S.
252

1993 ‘95 ‘95 ‘96 ‘99 2001 ‘15 ‘17 ‘17 ‘18
Racial
Gerrymandering

Shaw v. Reno, Miller v. United States Shaw v. Hunt, Hunt v. Easley v. Ala. Legis. Cooper v. Bethune-Hill v. North Carolina v.
509 U.S. 630 Johnson, v. Hays, 517 U.S. 899 Cromartie, Cromartie, Black Caucus Harris, 137 Va. State Bd. of ­Covington, 138
515 U.S. 900 515 U.S. 737 526 U.S. 541 532 U.S. 234 v. Alabama, S.Ct. 1455 Elections, 137 S.Ct. 2548
Bush v. Vera, 135 S.Ct. 1257 S.Ct. 788
517 U.S. 952

76
 CROWD ACADEMY Handbook Chapter 4. Federal Law Governing Redistricting

Racial Gerrymandering
The Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment limits ra-
cial gerrymanders in legislative districting plans.39 It prevents a State, in the
absence of “sufficient justification,” from “separating its citizens into different
voting districts on the basis of race.”40 “Just as the State may not, absent
extraordinary justification, segregate citizens on the basis of race in its public
parks, buses, golf courses, beaches, and schools, . . . it may not separate its
citizens into different voting districts on the basis of race.”41
To bring a racial
In 1993 the Supreme Court determined that redistricting is “is one area in gerrymandering claim,
“the plaintiff’s burden is
which appearances do matter” especially when the districts reach beyond
boundaries and politically cohesive areas.42 A redistricting plan that assigns

to show… that race was

members of one race to the same district but are widely spread across “geo-
graphical and political boundaries, and who may have little in common with

the predominant factor

one another but the color of their skin, bears an uncomfortable resemblance
to political apartheid.”43 This reinforces the perception that members of the
same racial group — regardless of their age, education, economic status, or
the community in which they live — think alike, share the same political inter-
ests, and will prefer the same candidates at the polls.”44 However, states are
motivating the legislature’s
authorized to recognize communities that have a particular racial makeup,
provided its action is directed toward some common thread of relevant inter-
decision to place a
ests.45 If a particular racial group lives in one community, a reapportionment
plan that concentrates members of the group in one district and excludes
significant number of
others may reflect wholly legitimate purposes.46
voters within or without a
To bring a racial gerrymandering claim, “the plaintiff’s burden is to show,
particular district.”47
39
 ooper v. Harris, 137 S. Ct.
C
1455, 1463 (2017).

either through circumstantial evidence of a district's shape and demograph- Id. (citing Bethune-
40

Hill v. ­Virginia State Bd. of

Elections, 137 S. Ct. 788
ics or more direct evidence going to legislative purpose, that race was the (2017)) 
41
 iller v. Johnson, 515 U.S.
M
predominant factor motivating the legislature’s decision to place a signifi- 900, 913-14 (1995).
42
Id. at 242.
cant number of voters within or without a particular district.”47 To meet this 43
 ttps://law.justia.com/con-
h
stitution/us/amendment-
threshold, “a plaintiff must prove that the legislature subordinated traditional 14/06-equal-protection-of-
the-laws.html
race-neutral districting principles, including but not limited to compactness, 44
 ttps://scholarlycommons.
h
law.wlu.edu/cgi/viewcon-
contiguity, respect for political subdivisions or communities defined by actu- tent.cgi?article=2745&con-
text=wlulr at 122

al shared interests, to racial considerations.”48 If race-neutral considerations Id.

45

46
CITE
are the basis for redistricting legislation, and are not subordinated to race, a 47
Id. at 124.
48
Id. at 124.
State can defeat a racial gerrymandering claim.49 49
Id.
78
 CROWD ACADEMY Handbook Chapter 4. Federal Law Governing Redistricting

 ush v. Vera, 517 U.S. 952,

B
Since electoral district lines are race neutral on their face, a deeper dive into
50

958 (1996)
 ethune-Hill v. Va. State Bd.
B
the legislative process is necessary before strict scrutiny can be found appli-
51

of Elections, 137 S. Ct. 788,

798 (2017). 
52
Id. cable in redistricting cases.50 The shape of the district “is relevant not because
Id.
bizarreness is a necessary element of the constitutional wrong or a threshold
53

54
 haw v. Hunt, 517 U.S. 899,
S
907-08, 1902 (1996).
requirement of proof, but because it may be persuasive circumstantial evi-
dence that race for its own sake, and not other districting principles, was the
legislature’s dominant and controlling rationale.”51 Parties can utilize evidence
other than oddly shaped districts to “establish race-based districting and
may show predominance either through circumstantial evidence of … de-
mographics or more direct evidence going to legislative purpose.”52 Once it
is established that race was the predominate factor in drawing the plan, the
court will apply the highest level of scrutiny.

“Strict scrutiny” is the most stringent level of scrutiny applied by the courts to
determine if there is an equal protection violation. Strict scrutiny is not trig-
gered where race is merely contemplated to draft a redistricting plan; “nor
does it apply to all cases of intentional creation of majority-minority dis-
tricts.”53 Under certain circumstances, drawing racial distinctions are permis-
sible to pursue a compelling state interest. “A State, however, is constrained in
how it may pursue that end: The means chosen to accomplish the State’s as-
serted purpose must be specifically and narrowly framed to accomplish that
purpose. North Carolina, therefore, must show not only that its redistrict-
ing plan was in pursuit of a compelling state interest, but also that its district-

draw the line

ing legislation is narrowly tailored to achieve [that] compelling interest.”54

80
 CROWD ACADEMY Handbook Chapter 4. Federal Law Governing Redistricting

“A State’s interest in remedying the effects of past or present racial discrimi- For the district to survive strict scrutiny there must be a “strong basis in evi-
nation, in the proper case, may justify a government’s use of racial distinctions dence,” for concluding that creation of a majority-minority district is reason-
and survive strict scrutiny.55 However, the state must satisfy two conditions to ably necessary to comply with Section 2, and the districting that is based on
establish a compelling state interest. First, the discrimination must be iden- Section 2(a) race “substantially addresses the § 2 violation.”66 “Moreover, the district drawn
tified discrimination.56 The States must identify the discrimination, public or of the VRA in order to satisfy § 2 must not subordinate traditional districting principles to
private, with some specificity before they may use race-conscious relief.” 57
prohibits race substantially more than is reasonably necessary to avoid § 2 liability.”67
Generalized assertions of past discrimination are insufficient because they fail any electoral
to provide the legislative body with the precise scope of the injury sought to practice or States also use Section 5 of the VRA to justify the use of race as the predom-
be remedied.58 Accordingly, efforts to remedy the effects of societal discrimi- procedure inant factor in drawing a redistricting plan. The Supreme Court has acknowl-
nation are not a compelling interest.59 “Second, the institution that makes the that “results edged that section five has a limited substantive goal: "'to ensure that no vot-
racial distinction must have had a "strong basis in evidence" to conclude that in a denial or ing-procedure changes would be made that would lead to a retrogression in
remedial action was necessary, “before it embarks on an affirmative-action
abridgement the position of racial minorities with respect to their effective exercise of the
of the right electoral franchise.”68 The court will determine whether the state went beyond
program.”60 For instance, in Shaw North Carolina legislature drew a district
of any citizen what was reasonably necessary to avoid retrogression.69
that spanned from parts of Charlotte to Greensboro to rectify the lack of
… to vote on
representation of black voters in a geographically compact, cohesive minori-
account of race The correlation between race and political behavior is another major consid-
ty population in south-central to southeastern North Carolina. The Supreme or color.”62 eration in racial gerrymandering cases. For example, in North Carolina the
Court determined that the map was not narrowly tailored to accomplish the
overwhelming majority of black voters are Democrats. While there is a large
State’s goal because the black voters of the south-central to southeastern re-
population of white Democrats in the State, black voters tend consistently to
gion would still suffer the same injury despite the new district extending from
support Democratic candidates while white Democrats will have a greater
Charlotte to Greensboro being drawn.61
likelihood to support some Republicans. This phenomenon makes it difficult
One common reason that state governments argue that a redistricting plan to determine if the General Assembly used race or political behavior as a
should survive strict scrutiny is the State’s efforts to comply with Section 2 predominate factor in drafting a redistricting plan. Congressional District 12
of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 (VRA). Section 2(a) of the VRA prohibits any in North Carolina has been at the center of this issue for multiple decades.
Id. at 909-10.
During the 1990s a racial gerrymandering claim was unsuccessful, in part,
55

electoral practice or procedure that “results in a denial or abridgement of the 56

Id. (internal ­citations
omitted).
right of any citizen … to vote on account of race or color.”62 A violation ex- because it could not be determined that black voters were placed in District
57
Id. (internal ­citations
omitted).
ists if the totality of circumstances shows that the political processes leading 12 because of the their race or their loyalty to Democratic candidates.70 On
58
Id. (internal ­citations
omitted).
to nomination or election are not equally open to a certain class of citizens the other hand, two decades later, the district was found unconstitutional be-
59
Id. (internal ­citations
omitted). Id.
cause the evidence showed that the General Assembly very carefully packed
66

in that its members have less opportunity to elect representatives of their 60

Id. (internal ­citations 67
Id. at 909-10.
omitted).
choice.63 The Court affords states “a limited degree of leeway” to use race as
68
Id. at 983. black voters in the redrawn 12th Congressional District.71 The evidence showed
61
Id. 69
Id.
the primary factor in a redistricting plan to satisfy Section 2 of the VRA.64 Typ-
62
52 U.S.C. § 10301 (2019). 70
Easley v. C
­ romartie, 532 that a black voter was three to four times more likely than a white voter to
63
Id. § (b). U.S. 234, 257 (2001).
ically the State will draw a majority-minority district or district in which black 64
Bush, 517 U.S. at 977 71
Cooper v. Harris, 137 S.
cast his ballot within District 12’s borders regardless of party affiliation.72
(1996). Ct. 1455, 1474-75 (2017).
voters or other people of color make up the majority of voters in the district.65 65
See, e.g., Id. 72
Id.

82
 CROWD ACADEMY Handbook Chapter 4. Federal Law Governing Redistricting

Section 2 of the VRA 3 Gingles

Conditions
Thornburg v. Gingles
Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act prevents the use of district lines that deny
minority voters an equal opportunity “to participate in the political process
1 2 3
and to elect representatives of their choice.”73 Section 2 is applicable to Sizable Minority Majority
both intentional and unintended unfair electoral processes and policies
­Minority ­Population ­Population
­Population Vote Vote
with demonstrable discriminatory effects.74 Courts apply a test determine
that is geographically trends toward the same trends toward the
whether “districts are drawn in a manner that takes decisive political power ­distributed so that the type of candidate, based candidate with different
voters could control a on a shared sense of political interests than
away from a cohesive minority bloc otherwise at risk for discrimination.”75 The district. ­political or social identity. the minority population’s
candidate of choice.
three-part test derives from the Supreme Court case Thornburg v. Gingles, thus
the test is commonly referred to as the Gingles conditions.76 The first Gin-
gles condition basically tests whether there is a sizable minority population
that is geographically distributed so that the voters could control a district.77
A majority of voters belong to a geographically compact racial, ethnic, or lan-
guage minority community.78 Although compactness has never been precisely
defined in this context, it generally applies to populations of people that are
If all three conditions described above are met with evidence, the court
not spread far apart and where the boundaries are fairly regular without por-
reviews the “totality of the circumstances” to determine whether the minority
tions of the boundaries spreading out in several different directions.79
vote has been diluted.85 Rough proportionality is another important factor
The second Gingles condition concerns whether the minority population that is taken into consideration. Rough proportionality determines “whether
usually votes together for the same type of candidate, based on a shared 73
http://redistricting.lls.
minorities have the opportunity to elect representatives of their choice in a
edu/where.php
sense of political or social identity.80 “This is a nuanced test: not whether the 74
Id.
number of districts roughly proportional to the percentage of minority voters
community usually votes for Democrats or Republicans (or others), but wheth-
75
Id. in the population as a whole.86 Section 2 does not guarantee proportionali-
76
Id.
er they would, given a fair mix of candidates, tend to vote cohesively for the 77
 hornburg v. Gingles, 478
T ty.”87 However, under circumstances in which a minority group is able to elect
U.S. 30, 50 (1986)
same type of Democrats or Republicans (or others).”81 78
 ttp://redistricting.lls.
h a percentage of representatives equal to the percentage of the minority
edu/where.php
79
Id. group’s eligible voting population, courts are reluctant to find a violation of
Gingles, 478 U.S at 50.
The third Gingles condition tests whether the rest of the population in the Section 2 even if the three Gingles conditions are met. On the other hand, if
80

81
 ttp://redistricting.lls.
h
edu/where.php
area usually votes together for a candidate representing different political in- the minority group does not have such an opportunity, courts will be more
82
Gingles, 478 U.S at 50.
terests than the minority population’s candidate of choice. “If so, this would
82 83
 ttp://redistricting.lls.
h open to finding a Section 2 violation.88 “For those drawing the lines and seek-
edu/where.php
mean that the minority’s preferred candidate would almost always lose — if 84
Id. ing to avoid legal trouble, the usual technique involves protecting substantial
85
Id.
the minority community’s voting power were not specifically protected. 83
86
Id. minority populations in racially polarized areas, by drawing district lines so
Together, the second and third conditions are known generally as ‘racially Id.
that those minorities have the functional opportunity to elect a representative
87

88
Id.
polarized’ voting.” 84 89
Id. of their choice.”89
84
 CROWD ACADEMY Handbook Chapter 4. Federal Law Governing Redistricting

Racially Polarized Voting

(RPV)
Racially polarized voting exists when voters of different racial or eth-
nic backgrounds exercise distinct candidate preferences in an elec-
tion.90 “It means simply that voters of different groups are voting in
opposite directions, rather than in a coalition.91 RPV does not mean
voters are racist, it only measures the outcomes of voting patterns
and determines whether patterns exist based on race/ethnicity.”92

“Voting is polarized when (1) the political preferences of majority-race

and minority-race voters diverge substantially and (2) the racial
majority votes with enough cohesion to usually defeat the minority’s
candidates of choice.”93 These points are defined as “preference
polarization” and “voting power” requirements.94 Since Thornburg v
Gingles, plaintiffs have been required to satisfy both conditions and
also propose a remedial district at the outset of their case.95 The
analysis centers on the individual voters within a jurisdiction.96 Even
90 
http://mattbarreto.com/
in circumstances in which the governing body is well intentioned, the papers/polarized_vot-
ing_wa.pdf
individual voters across the county may behave in a way that blocks 91
Id.
92
Id.
minority representation. Once the Gingles test is satisfied the court
97
93 
https://ccis.ucsd.edu/_
files/journals/8racial-
applies the liability standard prescribed by statute: “whether the ly-polarized-voting.pdf
94
Id.
totality of circumstances indicates that plaintiff-race voters have less 95
Id.

opportunity than other members of the electorate to participate in 96

Id.
97
Id.
the political process and to elect representatives of their choice.”98 98
Id.

86
 CROWD ACADEMY Handbook Chapter 4. Federal Law Governing Redistricting

Coalition districts The Promise of Partisan

Gerrymandering Limitation
In some areas of the country various groups of people live in close
proximity and share similar interests. In certain circumstances these 99 
https://www.law.berke- 103 
Vieth v. Jubelirer, 541 U.S.
ley.edu/files/Coalition(1). 267, 281 (2004) Before the United States Supreme Court determined that partisan
groups of people could be placed into the same district combing pdf 104
Id. at 306.
100
Id. gerrymandering was non-justiciable and could not be addressed by
to create a majority enabling the group to elect a representative of Id. at 311.
105
101
Id. 106 
Id. at 367 (internal the Supreme Court, the court hinted that limitations could be placed
their choice.99 Where more than one protected minority groups are Id. citations omitted).
102

107
Id. at 313. on partisan gerrymandering if a workable standard was brought be-
combined to form a majority in a district a coalition district is creat-
fore the Court. In Vieth v. Jubelirer, 541 U.S. 267, 306 (2004), the United
ed.100 Efforts to create coalition districts where no racial or protected
States Supreme Court addressed claims of partisan gerrymandering
language minority group is populous enough to form a majority in a
during a Pennsylvania election. A plurality of the United States Su-
district alone ensures compliance with the VRA and avoids diluting
preme Court held, however, that the existence of the alleged political
minority-voting strength.101
gerrymandering was a political question thereby prohibiting judicial

The first Gingles precondition is generally established through the intervention.103

use of Census data which identifies where individuals live in an area.

Justice Kennedy wrote a concurring opinion reasoning that he would
Based on this data, line drawers can determine where two (or more)
not deny all possibility of judicial relief if some limited and precise
minority groups together constitute more than 50% of the citizen
rationale were found to correct an established violation of the Con-
voting age population in a particular area.102 These areas can serve
stitution in some redistricting cases.104 Justice Kennedy noted that
as coalition districts. Communities, organizers, and voting rights
while no standard had emerged in Vieth, the case should not be tak-
organizations should also work together to find candidates that ap-
en to prove that none would emerge in the future.105 Justice Kenne-
peal to different minority groups to enable them to combine togeth-
dy further reasoned that “[w]here important rights are involved, the
er to create coalition districts.
impossibility of full analytical satisfaction is reason to err on the side
of caution … [a]llegations of unconstitutional bias in apportionment
are most serious claims, for we have long believed that the right to
vote is one of those political processes ordinarily to be relied upon to
protect minorities.”106 Justice Kennedy further explained “if suitable
standards with which to measure the burden a gerrymander impos-
es on representational rights did emerge, hindsight would show that
the Court prematurely abandoned the field.”107

88
 CROWD ACADEMY Handbook Chapter 4. Federal Law Governing Redistricting

Effects of Section 5 on

Black Political +30% +43 +10K

Participation and Black ­registration AA representatives in AAs holding

Representation rates
Percent that Black registration rates
­government
Increase in African-Americans in the U.S.
offices
As compared to fewer than 1,000 offices in 1965.
rebounded above white registration House and Senate between 1965 (5) and
The effects that Section 5 has rates between 1960 and 2010 in former today (48).
had on Black Registration Confederate states.
Rates since 1965.

Jurisdictions covered by Section 5 included “Alabama, Alaska, Georgia, Lou-

Section 5 of the VRA isiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, and Virginia, In addition, certain political
subdivisions (usually counties) in four other states (Arizona, Hawaii, Idaho, and
Section 5 of the VRA was enacted to freeze changes in election practices or North Carolina.)”111
procedures in areas across the country which had well-documented records
Section 5 served as key legislation to ensure the franchise could be exercised
of race discrimination in politics.108 New procedures were to be reviewed by
by black voters. While the Section 2 eliminated the discriminatory tests in
the United States Attorney General, or by way of a lawsuit whose jurisdiction
place in 1965, Section 5 disrupted the habitual practice by affected States of
would be in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia. The
simply replacing discriminatory practices with new provisions.”112 “Black regis-
purpose of the review — otherwise known as “preclearance” — was to ensure
tration rates in the former Confederate states rebounded from 30 percentage
that new practices or procedures would not have a discriminatory purpose
points below white registration rates in 1960 to equal or greater than white
or effect.109
registration rates in 2010.113 Black turnout in elections followed a similar pat-
The United States Supreme Court reasoned that: tern.”114 Only five African Americans were in the U.S. House and Senate in 1965;
yet, today there are 48.115 “Since 1965, African-Americans went from holding
Section 5 was a response to a common practice in some jurisdictions of staying fewer than a 1,000 offices nationwide to over 10,000.”116 111 
Id.
one step ahead of the federal courts by passing new discriminatory voting laws 112
 ttps://campaign-
h
as soon as the old ones had been struck down. That practice had been possi- legal.org/update/

ble because each new law remained in effect until the Justice Department or
On June 25, 2013, the Supreme Court blunted the effect of the VRA in Shelby five-decades-section-
5-how-key-provision-
voting-rights-act-pro-
private plaintiffs were able to sustain the burden of proving that the new law, too, County v. Holder.117 Shelby County, Alabama filed suit urging that Section 5 of tected-our-democracy
113
Id.
was discriminatory … Congress therefore decided, as the Supreme Court held the Voting Rights Act is unconstitutional. “The Supreme Court ruled that the 114
Id.
it could, to shift the advantage of time and inertia from the perpetrators of the
coverage formula in Section 4(b) of the Voting Rights Act — which determines Id.
115

evil to its victim, by freezing election procedures in the covered areas unless the 108 
https://www.justice.gov/
116
Id.

changes can be shown to be nondiscriminatory.110 crt/about-section-5- which jurisdictions are covered by Section 5 — is unconstitutional because it is 117
https://www.brennan-
voting-rights-act center.org/legal-work/
109
Id. based on an old formula.”118 As a result, Section 5 is inoperable until Congress shelby-county-v-holder
118
Id.
110
 iller v. Johnson, 515
M
U.S. 900, 926 (1995). enacts a new coverage formula.119 119
Id.
90
 CROWD ACADEMY Handbook Chapter 4. Federal Law Governing Redistricting

“Throwing out preclearance when

it has worked and is continuing
to work to stop discriminatory Potential Exacerbated Census
changes is like throwing away your Undercount Even Without the
umbrella in a rainstorm because
you are not getting wet.” Citizenship Question
— Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg Traditionally, certain demographics in our society including people of col-
(dissenting) in Shelby or, low income citizens, and even children have been under counted by the
County v. Holder (2015) decennial census. In 2020 an inaccurate census could impact some of the
country's most difficult to count populations the hardest.120 A study conduct-
ed by Urban Institute reveals that the 2020 census could lead to the worst
undercount of black and Latinx in the country since 1990 Census.121 The study
projects as many as 2.2 million (3.57%) Latinx people around the country
could be undercounted in 2020.122 “Children under the age of 5 … also face an
undercount as high as 6.31%, or about 1.3 million young children.”123

In 2020 the United States Government will apply new ways of conducting the
census that have not been thoroughly tested which could further cause the
count to be inaccurate.124 Now, all households will be required to complete an
online form. The government will also be expanding the use of existing gov-
ernment records to help complete questionnaires for households that don’t
respond themselves.125 To make matters worse, uncertainty with respect to
funding has forced the Census Bureau to cancel two of the three field tests
for the 2020 census, including test runs designed for rural and Spanish-speak-
ing areas.”126

Although civil rights groups successfully blocked the addition of the proposed
citizenship question to the census, the mere discussion of the question, coupled
with the executive branch policies on immigrants at the southern border, and
120 
https://www.npr.
org/2019/06/04/728034176/2020-
census-could-lead-to-worst-under- mass shootings targeting the Latinx community have left people on edge.127
count-of-black-latinx-people-in-
30-years
121
Id.
122
Id.
123
Id.
124
Id.
125
Id.
126
Id.
127
 ttps://abcnews.go.com/Politics/
h
citizenship-question-dropped-cen-
sus-advocates-fear-damage/sto-
ry?id=64225417
92
 CROWD ACADEMY Handbook

CHAPTER 5

State Law
Governing
Redistricting:
See State
Supplement

94
 CHAPTER 6

Organizing
Around
Redistricting
Education and
Advocacy

96
 CROWD ACADEMY Handbook Chapter 6. Organizing Around Redistricting Education and Advocacy

The next three chapters of this text are

intended to provide CROWD Scholars with
some practical tools in their efforts to support
public engagement in the redistricting
process. This chapter focuses on organizing
efforts related to redistricting, while chapters
7 and 8 delve into legislative advocacy and
communications, respectively. Of course, these
three elements of public and civic engagement
are highly inter-related, so the material in
each chapter should be synthesized by the
reader as a cohesive approach to supporting
communication engagement.
There is no one-size-fits-all approach to effective organizing, advocacy and
communications efforts. Advocates on the ground will have to assess what
will work best given their local situations. That being said, the next three
chapters will provide CROWD Scholars with a toolbox of approaches, tips,
and strategies that can be deployed as Scholars and their partners see fit.
CROWD Academy Partners also stand ready and willing to help on-the-
ground advocates assess what organizing, advocacy, and communications
strategies will best serve each communities interest.

This chapter is divided into two main components: (1) EDUCATION: organiz-
ing to broadly education communities about the redistricting process; and (2)
MOBILIZATION: organizing a cohesive group with shared goals and objec-
tives to engage in legislative advocacy.
get equipped
98
 CROWD ACADEMY Handbook Chapter 6. Organizing Around Redistricting Education and Advocacy

Community Education: A
presentation and efforts may be more focused on the technicalities of redis-
tricting advocacy and reinforcing the intersectional lens recommended by the

Prerequisite to Community CROWD Academy.

Engagement on Redistricting But the hope is that the Scholars will also attempt outreach to community
members who may not already be engaged in some other sort of issue ad-
vocacy. Thus, the Scholars may need to employ basic organizing strategies to
As the saying goes, knowledge is power. Citizens who have had no exposure
identify and entice potential attendees to a presentation that they organize.
to or basic education on redistricting cannot effectively organize around a
And at those presentations, the Scholars may need to focus more heavily on
cohesive advocacy strategy. Indeed, even those who have some experience
the need for community engagement and offer tips on skills to engage indi-
but have not engaged the issue in the last decade will need to update their
viduals who do not typically work on issue advocacy.
knowledge. In order to mobilize around any advocacy initiative, there must
first be a base of community members armed with a strong understanding of
When it comes to organizing in order to reach the maximum number of com-
the issue. Thus, the first step to organizing is to build local power by ensuring
munity members as possible, there are three types or styles of organizing one
that as broad a swath as possible of community members comfortably un-
can utilize:
derstands the redistricting process. That, of course, is where the outreach that
CROWD Scholars will perform is critical. After attending the two-day CROWD
• Individual or Grassroots Organizing: Individual community members en-
training, all Scholars will be prepared to present 1-2 hour “Redistricting 101”
gage in a democratically-governed, values-driven process that catalyzes
education events in their communities and surrounding areas. Later effective
the power of individuals to work collectively to make changes they want
organizing efforts depend heavily on this educational outreach.
to see in their communities. Organizers believe that community members
can be experts, and that expertise is not the sole domain of professionals.
Many of the “Redistricting 101” trainings that CROWD Scholars’ offer over the
A first-generation Asian-American small business-owner can be an expert
next two years will presentations they may be invited to give by, for example,
on the redistricting process for her district, through her own experience
a local elected official who wants to encourage redistricting engagement, a
or by conducting community-led action research in her local business
neighborhood association that wants to ensure that its interests are repre-
community. Organizers inspire community leaders — everyday people — to
sented in redistricting, or a host of other individuals and organizations. These
speak up for themselves in the political process. In this way, organizing
invited presentations will be invaluable to introducing or re-introducing redis- The first step
to organizing differs fundamentally from most advocacy work: Grassroots or community
tricting concepts to a community. Such gatherings can also be self-selecting
is to build organizing is bottom-up, meaning community members themselves iden-
to bring individuals and groups that are already highly engaged in the civic/
local power by tify the issues, propose the solutions, and drive both strategy & execution.
political process together specifically to support this initiative. This is not a
ensuring that as A major theme of community organizing — and of the CROWD curricu-
bad outcome. Indeed, there is abundant opportunity for such individuals to
broad a swath lum — is leadership development at the local level.
elevate their current advocacy work by understanding the intersectional na-
as possible of
ture of redistricting. Local issues are intertwined with local maps. The CROWD
community • Grasstops Organizing: Bringing together a diverse group of individuals
Academy theory of change posits that when advocates at the grassroots members interested in learning about redistricting and hopefully being engaged in
level build power and engage the legislative process around redistricting, they comfortably redistricting processes at all level of government can be greatly expedited
will be far better positioned to achieve their policy goals than “experts” who understands and facilitated by working with “grasstops” community leaders (organiza-
may parachute into the community for redistricting advocacy or litigation. the redistricting tional leaders, community members in positions of power, respected elders
At these invited presentations, populated by engaged activists, the Scholar’s process. in the community, etc…). Individuals who would be considered “grasstops”
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will already be recognized as community leaders and will be able to help recruit
greater attendance at educational events and encourage further engagement
after those events. » Phonebanking: This tactic requires a list of contacts, available for a fee from the

• Organizational Outreach: This approach is not to be confused with coalition board of elections. Whether the list is generated through compiling the networks

building, which will be discussed later and is a critically important organizing and of the organizers’ contacts or a list obtained from an official source like the board

advocacy capacity. At this stage, however, reaching out to organizations in the of elections, phonebanking is an excellent tactic to recruit attendees for a Redis-

communities being targeted for redistricting education events, regardless of the tricting 101 event.

organizations’ focuses, is a great way to ensure that invitations to educational op- » Tabling: Tabling involves setting up a branded table (showing group name and of-
portunities reach a wide audience. fering informational resources, such as one page informational sheet) at a central

• Organizing tactics: Regardless of what type of organizing an advocate chooses, location where community members are known to gather, such as a farmer’s mar-
ket or community potluck. 2 or 3 representatives of the coalition sit at the table
it is important that the tactics be grounded in a well-thought-out campaign plan.
inviting conversations with passers-by about redistricting and encourage them to
When choosing the tactics a group of CROWD activists (community members how
add their name and contact information to a sign-up sheet, which can be used to
have attended a Redistricting 101 training or have otherwise expressed interest in
build a list of invitees to a Redistricting 101 event.
working with the CROWD Fellow in a more in-depth way) will use, Scholars and
Fellows should keep in mind that they need to be part of a broader strategy which » House parties: Redistricting 101 events can be held at a private home with snacks
is in turn dictated by their local campaign plan goals, whether the campaign is and refreshments, or they can be held in shared community spaces willing to ac-
Scholar-driven to generate attendance at Redistricting 101 events or Fellow- and commodate this kind of event, like a church basement or barbershop.
community-driven to generate support for redistricting coalition building or legisla-
» Online organizing: This tactic operates by focusing on building a strong digital
tive advocacy.
presence on the web as well as on social media. More details of this method will
» Door-to-door canvassing: Door-to-door canvassing is a time-honored tactic that be discussed in Chapter 7. Examples may include SEO (search engine optimiza-
can be used for a wide variety of advocacy or civic engagement outcomes, in- tion), #trending on Twitter, or viral memes.
cluding expanding membership, conducting surveys and grassroots organizing to
» Town hall meetings, tele-town halls online or accountability sessions.
influence a campaign target. Canvassing involves knocking on doors in a specific
neighborhood to educate and engage residents. Research has shown that a well- » Texting campaign: Texting campaigns are extremely efficient, especially for
run door canvass to educate citizens and even influence their attitudes about a kicking off an advocacy effort with a strong start by presenting a well-coordinat-
given issue can be highly impactful. Sometimes these face-to-face conversations ed group of advocates to the public. This tactic not only is fast, but it has higher
will be limited to learning more about the views of the community. In other cases, contact rates than email and it’s very personalized. Done well, this tactic projects a
the canvassers can offer educational information on an advovacy issue. show of strength.

» Street canvassing: The same technique as door-to-door canvassing, except » Visibility tactics: Visibility tactics can include chalking, posters, banners, dropping
street canvassing plays the process out by soliciting conversations with passers literature door to door.
by encountered on a particular street where the canvasser has stationed them-
selves for a period of time.

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 CROWD ACADEMY Handbook Chapter 6. Organizing Around Redistricting Education and Advocacy

After the Scholar has been invited to give a Redistricting 101 presentation in a
community, or has advertised a Redistricting 101 event and recruited attend-
ees, the Scholar will then prepare for that community education event. That
preparation should include:

1. The presenting Scholar should contact their CROWD Academy Fellow (if
Fellow has been identified) to let them know that a Redistricting 101 event
is being conducted. The Fellow may also want to attend.
2. The presenting Scholar should utilize the sign-sheet provided by the
CROWD Academy Partners to capture the names and contact informa-
tion of individuals attending the Redistricting 101 event.
3. The presenting Scholar should either print CROWD Academy handouts
for each attendee (provided on a thumb drive at the Academy) or request
that CROWD Academy Partners mail the Scholar the needed number of
handouts. Fellows can also hand out accompanying talking points and
other resources if they are involved in the events.
4. After the Redistricting 101 event, the Scholar should share the sign-in sheet
with the Fellow, along with any assessment of individuals and groups that
are particularly interested in redistricting advocacy so that the Fellow can
follow up with those individuals.

Different Scholars will have different capacities to offer Redistricting 101

events, but every event conducted dramatically increases the number of
citizens who have been exposed to enough redistricting education to pursue
further engagement if they so desire. This is critical to the theory of change
embraced by the CROWD Academy.

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• How can the CROWD Fellows, Scholars and Partners align key partners
Community Mobilization: (structurally) for effective advocacy?

Organizing for Successful » Does it make sense to create an “umbrella organization” to encompass
the CROWD activists working on the issue to make coalition-building
Legislative Advocacy easier and to avoid potential conflict?

The answers to these questions will provide a basis for building coalition and
After the CROWD Scholars and, perhaps to a lesser extent, the CROWD Fel- alignment amongst the CROWD activists preparing to mobilize for redistrict-
lows have conducted extensive educational training in the communities with- ing advocacy.
in their larger region, the CROWD cohort (Scholars and Fellows) should be
able to identify communities or individuals who are energized to delve deeper Coalition Building: Coalitions are formed by building relationships of mutual
into redistricting advocacy. Of course, just because a person attends a Redis- confidence with individuals who then coalesce around a set of shared values,
tricting 101 event and does not express interest in deeper engagement does usually pertaining to a particular political or social issue. These community
Organizing
not mean they cannot later be mobilized to support the advocacy efforts of groups can then bolster their competence and capacity by former deliberate around any
those willing to take the lead in working with the Fellows on advocacy efforts. partnerships with other community groups or organizations that complement issue, but
their strengths. The take home here is that while both will be critical to effec- especially
The CROWD Fellows and Scholars should work together to pull together fol- tive organizing & advocacy around redistricting, organizing organizations is redistricting
low up meetings in jurisdictions where there is a critical mass of energized cit- not the same as organizing individuals. engagement
izens. These later meetings will be referred to as meetings amongst CROWD and advocacy,
activists. In jurisdictions where the Scholars or Fellows assess a need for Initial planning methods for coalition building will vary depending on the tends to work
community engagement in redistricting, but the Redistricting 101 events have extent to which the mix of CROWD activists assembled is comprised of indi- better when
not produced a critical mass, the Scholars and Fellows may need to employ viduals or organizations. Note that organizations can and should play vary- the campaign
some of the organizing tactics described in this first section of this chapter to ing roles in the CROWD efforts. Even if organizations cannot commit large is represented
reach that critical mass. amounts of time or resources to the redistricting advocacy campaign, it may by the various
be able to lend its name to the campaign as an endorser, which can still be
different
In gathering community members for mobilization, Fellows in particular quite valuable.
communities
should consider the following questions, and seek answers from the activists: or stakeholders
Organizing around any issue, but especially redistricting engagement and
affected by that
• Who are the key partners (individuals and/or organizations) that the advocacy, tends to work better when the campaign is represented by the
issue.
CROWD Fellow should be contacting? various different communities or stakeholders affected by that issue. Pulling
» Who is already doing advocacy work in the redistricting or democracy these diverse communities together at the beginning may seem intimidating,
space? but building a broad alliance is crucial to establishing a more intersectional
» When activists are assembled, are there valuable but absent voices? lens to the broad issue of redistricting. Whatever the core local issues in a giv-
en community are, there likely is some advocacy work to be done specific to
» Who might be considered “trusted messengers” to bring further activists
those concerns in the redistricting process. The goal of early organizing work
into the group?
should be to bring diverse voices to the table for community engagement in
» How can the CROWD Fellow center those directly affected by order to identify just what the core local issues are and how to advocate for
­community problems? those interests in redistricting.

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When the CROWD Fellow, perhaps supported by CROWD Scholar(s), con-

Explaining the campaign
venes their first meeting of CROWD Activists, the following agenda items are
suggested: Hand out one-page descriptions of the CROWD Academy and of grass-
roots-driven redistricting advocacy and go over it with the group. The
• Introductions Fellow or someone else very familiar with the CROWD strategy should lead
• Explaining the campaign this part of the meeting. CROWD Partners can help prepare Fellows and
• Assessing your community provide resources.
• Brainstorming allies
• Developing an initial strategy
• Creating subcommittees and roles
• Next steps Assessing the community
It can be advanta- The Fellow should invite the activists to reflect on the landscape of the city or Organizing
geous to make sure town. Are residents educated on racial and social justice issues? What kind of around any
Some Fellows might choose to save some of these items for a second meet-
the activists actually ing, and instead keep their first meeting focused on the first three or four
issues-based campaigns have there been in recent years? Are there strong, issue, but
include people who bullet points. How the first meeting should be structured depends on the
organized groups already working on these issues? Are there civic engage- especially
do not have cam- capacity of the people involved. It may be better to keep it short, or it could
ment networks to tap into? How can the group build on what already exists? redistricting
paign experience Which communities have been traditionally excluded, thus requiring extra engagement
be more effective to define the local campaign more deeply right away. The
along with those outreach? What messaging will resonate with the people in your community? and advocacy,
CROWD Fellow on the ground should be the one to make this assessment.
who do. tends to work
The CROWD Fellow should either identify the following data points for cur- better when
The following sections include more detail on each of the agenda items
rent and past officeholders or delegate that task to an activist at the meet- the campaign
listed above.
ing: What is the officeholder’s name? What is the officeholder’s address? is represented
What is the officeholder’s winning percentage in the most recent election by the various
(include multiple elections cycles, if applicable)? What is the race or ethnicity
different
communities
Introductions of the officeholder?
or stakeholders
Go around the group and ask all the activists to introduce themselves. Ask affected by that
Likewise, the CROWD Fellow should also assess current leadership or ask for
each person to share his or her name, why they are interested this campaign,
issue.
assistance in doing so: What good policies have been realized and who was
and what other grassroots campaigns, if any, they have supported (to any responsible for them? What bad policies have been enacted and who was re-
degree) in the past. sponsible for them? Develop a table that lists the policies and rate them good
or bad or even neutral. This can be an easy way to surmise whether an office-
It can be advantageous to make sure the activists actually include people holder is responsive or not to the district’s or jurisdiction’s community. What
who do not have campaign experience along with those who do. The pres- are the names and affiliations of the members of the local legislative body?
ence of both experience levels will infuse the fresh energy of newcomers to Based on what you know about them, who can you expect to be receptive
organizing while simultaneously taking advantage of experienced organizers’ to your efforts? Who can you expect to be obstructive to your efforts? Who
skills and experience. might be on the fence? If the members represent specific wards or districts,
have you connected with people from each ward?

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You might not know the answer to every one of these questions before or
even by the end of the first meeting of CROWD activists, but write down Fellows might also consider reaching out to teachers, professors, students,
what answers the group does know and make a plan to research any ques- civic groups, neighborhood associations, religious leaders, union locals, politi-
tions that remain. cal party chapters, librarians, and attorneys.

Similarly, in identifying potential opponents, the following discussion prompts

can be utilized:
Brainstorming Allies & Identifying Opponents
• Who are your potential opponents?
To get started on building the network for CROWD advocacy work, the
• Of these, which will you prioritize in your efforts?
CROWD Fellow and the CROWD activists the Fellow has assembled should
• What is the purpose of their opposition?
begin to brainstorm allies who might be able to help them build a strong,
• What tactics and arguments might they use?
diverse coalition representing as many different community voices as possi-
• What will your strategy be to counter the opposition?
ble — especially those groups directly affected by the core local issues, includ-
ing the following:

Developing an initial strategy A strategy is more

The 2020 census
• Refusal of legislative bodies to recognize demographic growth of minority than just a plan — it’s
groups by drawing maps that do not reflect the increase in voting pow- Whether you consider it at your initial meeting or wait until your coalition in-
anticipates a means of building
er that growth communities ought to see, as has happened with black cludes a few more people, strategy should be laid out fairly soon after decid-
registering a collective power
and Latino communities after the last decennial census. The 2020 census ing to start a campaign.
significant degree of in order to entice
anticipates registering a significant degree of growth among the Asian
growth among the a specific decision
population. The Midwest Academy Manual for Activists defines strategy as, “a method of
Asian population. making body to take
• Environmental groups advocating to address toxic waste issues plaguing gaining enough power to make a government or corporate official do some-
a particular action.
the community, or advocacy groups seeking assistance with relief and thing in the public’s interest that [they do] not otherwise wish to do.” A strate-
recovery aid from legislators after a local disaster. gy is more than just a plan — it’s a means of building collective power in order
• Parent and education rights groups advocating to address crumbling to entice a specific decision making body to take a particular action.
schools in public school districts.
• Gun violence activists such as Moms Demand Action. This definition, along with the Midwest Academy’s Strategy Chart, provides
a good starting point for developing a strategy that will be successful in your
community. The strategy chart has five columns:
When trying to identify potential allies, the following discussion questions
may be useful: • Long-term, intermediate, and short-term goals
• Organizational considerations
• Who are the group’s likely allies? • Constitutions, allies, and opponents
• What is their self-interest? • Decision-makers (targets)
• Who might be an unlikely ally? • Tactics
• Of these, which will you prioritize in your efforts?
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Midwest Academy Strategy Chart
After choosing your issue, fill in this chart as a guide to developing strategy. Be specific. List all the possibilities.

Organizational Constituents, Allies

Goals Targets Tactics
Considerations and Opponents

List the long- List the resources Who cares about Primary Targets For each target, list
term objectives of that your this issue enough the tactics that each
your campaign organization brings to join in or help A target is always constituent group
to the campaign. the organization? a person. It is never can best use to
Include number an institution or make its power felt.
of staff, facilities, • Whose problem elected body.
1 reputation,
canvass, etc.
is it?
• What do they • Who has the
Tactics must be: Creating subcommittees and roles
gain if they win? power to give you • in context
What is the budget, • What risks are what you want? • flexible and creative Depending on the needs and capacities of each local group of CROWD
including in-kind they taking? • What power do you • directed at a
contributions, for • Into what groups have over them? specific target Activists, subcommittees or roles will differ. Below are four roles of effective
this campaign? are they organized? • make sense to facilitation that can be played by one to four people, depending on capacity.
the membership
• be backed up These descriptions offer a sense of tasks any organizer ought to keep in mind
State the List the specific ways Who are your Secondary Targets by a specifc
form of power for engaging a group at a meeting or event.
intermediate in which you want opponents?
goals for this issue your organization to • Who has power
campaign. What
constitutes victory?
be strengthened by
this campaign. Fill in
• What will your
victory cost them?
over the people
with the power Tactics include: • Outreach: builds connections and relationships with trusted messengers.
numbers for each: • What will they to give you what
• media experts
• Facilitator: responsible for keeping the team on track through the planning
How will the campaign: do/spend to you want?
• Win concrete • Expand leadership oppose you? • What power do you • actions for process and establishing mechanisms for accountability. The facilitator
2 improvement in group • How strong have over them? information and
demands also ensures that logistics for internal events are coordinated and roles are
people's lives? • Increase experience are they?
• Give people a sense of existing • How are they • public hearings clearly assigned.
• strikes
of their own power?
• Alter the relations •
leadership
Build membership
organized?
• voter registration • Secretary: documents topics at meetings, with careful attention to deter-
of power? base and voter
education minations resolved, and outstanding issues.
• Expand into new
constitutencies • lawsuits
• accountability
• Communications: responsible party for coordinating with media outlets
• Raise more money
sessions and ensuring that messaging is consistent with the group’s agreed upon
• elections
• negotiations messages. Monitors opportunities for the group to deliver their message
What short-term List internal
or partial victories problems that have with high impact and public media items that require the group’s re-
3 can you win as to be considered
sponse.
steps toward your if the campaign
long-term goal? is to suceed.

As the CROWD Activist group fills in the chart, the CROWD Fellow can use the information collected
while assessing the community and brainstorming allies to start developing a strategy for the redistrict-
ing advocacy campaign. Filling in the chart will help the group go further into detail and think through
the steps to be taken.

After completing a chart, create a timeline for carrying out the strategy. The timeline can, and probably
will, change throughout the campaign, so be sure to build in extra time. Remember to use the timeline
as a guide to stay on track, but remain willing to adapt and improvise as you move forward.
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 was grassroots participation in public hearings at the state, county and mu-
nicipal levels. Additionally, these local activists engaged in drawing their own
district plans that could offer the black community a reasonable opportunity
to elect a black candidate of choice.

Electoral power gained as a result of this grassroots organizing effort was

significant. After 18 months of struggle led by those grassroots organizations
and individuals, the Mississippi State Legislature adopted a Redistricting Plan
in 1992 which created the maximum number of electable black districts. In the
1992 special legislative elections, black citizens turned out in record numbers
to double the size of the Legislative Black Caucus from 21 in 1991 to 42 in
1993. At the county level, the black community elected 30% of all the county
supervisors in the state. There was also a significant increase in the election
of black candidates for municipal and other county offices, and especially
for justice, circuit and chancery court judgeships. In the 1995 elections, the
Legislative Black Caucus increased to 45. In 1999 statewide elections the
Success Story: Southern Echo and African-American community retained every one of the 45 caucus seats and

Education-Driven Redistricting increased the number of African-American county supervisors and judges.

The role of community organizing was key to these gains. After the 1990
After the civil rights movement of the 1960’s, the old methods utilized by white census, Southern Echo held redistricting training workshops in 20+ counties
supremacists to suppress the black vote could no longer pass as a viable in Mississippi, so that grassroots level activists would have a clear vision that
means for keeping black voters from the ballot box. In order for white suprem- the election of accountable black public officials was essential to the empow-
acy to retain exclusive control over the political and educational systems, erment of the community; an effective strategy that aimed to ensure every
complicit legislative bodies relied increasingly on redistricting to neutralize redistricting plan must create the maximum number of electable black dis-
any potential for the black community to gain influence over the political tricts; and a program of work designed to build a broad coalition of leaders,
process by exercising the right to vote. In Mississippi, this resulted in com- activists, and grassroots organizations armed with the information and skills
munities whose legislative bodies were so entrenched with white supremacy necessary to impact the formation of public policy through the redistricting
that the state legislature still continued to refuse ratifying the 13th Amend- process at the county and state levels.
ment — passed by the U.S. Congress in December 6, 1865 — as late as 1995.
County redistricting committees were formed in ten Delta counties to work on
In 1990, Southern Echo joined forces with the umbrella organizations of the redistricting on the county and municipal level. The statewide Mississippi Re-
Mississippi Redistricting Coalition and the Delta Redistricting Working Group districting Coalition and the Delta Redistricting Working Group — umbrella or-
to provide training, technical and legal support to grassroots communities. ganizations comprised of representatives from the ten Delta counties — were
Hundreds of black citizens became involved in the redistricting process. There formed to enable grassroots community activists, organizations, leaders and

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 public officials from African-American communities to work together on legis- grasstops members of the black community and white farmers on the ref-
lative and congressional redistricting, under a common umbrella that helped erendum initiative to reduce the size of state legislature in order to force the
avoid the organizational jealousies often associated with coalitional work. need for new maps to be drawn.
The umbrella structure allowed these groups to enjoy the capacity benefits of
a coalition without compromising their county redistricting efforts. During this same period, the Mississippi legislature failed to adopt the Nation-
al Voter Registration Act (a.k.a. “motor voter”) three times. The motor voter bill
These grassroots communities, supported with ongoing organizing, legal had resulted in more than 45,000 newly registered voters, but the federal act
and technical assistance by Southern Echo, led the statewide organizing required states to adopt the NVRA for those registrations to be valid in state
efforts and negotiations. Importantly, they required their lawyers to accept elections. In 1998 Southern Echo revived the alliances built during the redis-
the leadership of the community throughout the decision-making process. tricting work it had done a few years prior, and educated the public through
This allowed county organizations to work independently at the county level, issues of a bulletin called “Legislative Struggles” and a motor voter brochure.
without compromising their local agendas when they collaborated with other They also brought local community activists to the legislature to engage the
counties statewide on redistricting efforts. legislative process directly. A federal court later ordered that all voters regis-
tered under the NVRA could also vote in state elections.
As a result of the foundation laid during the legislative redistricting, an orga-
nized African-American community with legal and technical assistance from Prior to the 1990 – 1992 redistricting process, the only legislation acknowl-
Southern Echo provided the leadership in the development of the 1991 Con- edging the concerns of the black community was the creation of a holiday
gressional redistricting plan that retained congressional district in the Mis- to honor Dr. King. After the objectives of the grassroots organizers in the 10
sissippi Delta that would enable the election of a black-preferred candidate. working groups were achieved, a cascade of legislative successes that reflect-
This success was won notwithstanding the determined resistance to a black ed the voices and votes of the black community brought major shifts in pow-
district from the National Democratic Party and some State AFL-CIO leaders. er to the historically excluded African-American community members. The
After the legislative redistricting plan was approved by the federal court in year 1997 witnessed the first major appropriations bill for education passed in
the spring of 1992, Southern Echo immediately held a series of non-partisan a generation. In 1999, the State Legislature adopted the NVRA or motor voter
workshops across the state to inform people of the new legislative district bill. The new millennium ushered in Senate Bill 2488 to create a system de-
lines and how to run unity caucuses to prevent the splitting of the black vote signed to hold local districts accountable for low performance on standard-
that would enable white candidates to win. ized tests. The Mississippi Education Working group drafted amendments to
provide for the systematic participation of parents and community leaders in
Between 1994 – 1998, Mississippi’s ultra-conservative Republican governor and the evaluation of local schools. Additionally, they developed and implement-
right wing leaders in the legislature introduced a package of proposed laws ed improvement plans for the schools.
designed to diminish the impact of the black vote, and therefore the power of
the black community, on the formation of public policy. Several attempts to These fundamental powers shifts and their impacts on education policy
pass this through the initiative and referendum petition process were defeat- would not have been possible were it not for the successful redistricting advo-
ed due to lack of support by registered voters in the 2nd Congressional Dis- cacy that secured maps that protected black communities in Mississippi.
trict, rooted in the Mississippi Delta. In a mere 30 day stretch, Southern Echo
held 68 meetings in 40 communities in the Delta and hill country to educate

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CHAPTER 7

Engaging in
the Legislative
Process at
All Levels of
Government

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 CROWD ACADEMY Handbook Chapter 7. Engaging in the Redistricting Legislative
Process at All Levels of Government

The following chapter lays out guidance for

mobilizing to engage in the legislative process.
This phase of CROWD Academy advocacy
work will follow the education phase. At this
point, the CROWD Scholars and Fellows will
have invested much time and effort into
community education and situating coalitions
for redistricting education. But this phase
is critical. This is where all that work gets
translated to results. Also, as an aside, as used
throughout this chapter, the term “legislative
body” or “legislative decision-maker” does
not refer solely to state legislatures. Instead, it
refers to the policy making group that is tasked
with redistricting.

mobilize

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 CROWD ACADEMY Handbook Chapter 7. Engaging in the Redistricting Legislative
Process at All Levels of Government

Demystifying Interactions with

Legislative Bodies
Beyond the perceived complexity of redistricting, one of the other biggest
hurdles to community engagement in redistricting is when community mem-
bers feel uncomfortable or intimidated by the prospect of interacting with the Ensuring Access to Tools Necessary
legislative bodies or decision-makers tasked with redistricting. These bodies
can range from state legislatures to town councils. But the ability to interact
for an Effective Advocacy Strategy
with policy makers is a skill set used by advocates in so many other realms of
policy advocacy — redistricting should not be any more intimidating. Developing an effective advocacy strategy begins with an assessment of
every redistricting coalition’s capacities. For the purposes of making this
As discussed in chapter 6, one of the easiest ways to understand and effec- assessment, the necessary capacities can be broken down into the six dis-
tively communicate with these bodies is to do a bit of “homework.” Under- When an advocate tinct advocacy capacities listed below. Some advocacy groups may not have
standing who the decision-makers are, how long they have been serving, and likely knows more internal access to all of these capacities, which is why it is essential to part-
what kinds of policies they have supported in the past can make it easy for about the process ner and share expertise to effectively advocate for fair and racially equitable
an advocate to decide who to approach first. Furthermore, the confidence than the legislative maps and map-drawing processes. This becomes especially significant in
that the well-prepared advocate exudes will demonstrate to the represen- actor, this can be a post-Shelby world, where the notification system on which voting rights
tative that their constituency stands ready to call the representative for the a powerful and advocates in many Southern states previously relied no longer exists. CROWD
redistricting process as well as outcomes. valuable strategic Academies seek to fill this gap by bringing together, and/or supporting part-
advantage. ners who have expertise in data & demography, voting rights law, communi-
Also, advocates should not underestimate how unfamiliar decision-makers cations, and organizing/advocacy to build and share each of these capacities
themselves may be with the redistricting process. For many elected officials and create effective advocacy infrastructures. It is imperative that Academy
engaged in redistricting, this may be their first redistricting cycle. They may attendees and fellows be equipped with the right strategies, information and
not have had the benefit of going through previous cycles in their current tools to succeed.
capacity. When an advocate likely knows more about the process than the
legislative actor, this can be a powerful and valuable strategic advantage.
Community members are more than capable of interacting with these de-
cision-makers, and the CROWD Academy seeks to build that confidence so
every person who decides to become engaged in redistricting feels comfort-
able advocating with these governmental actors.

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Six Advocacy Capacities Needed to

Successfully Organize Around Fair Maps in Pro-Tips:
Questions to
Redistricting: Ask Before the
Redistricting
• Map Analysis & Advocacy: Analyze current and proposed plans. Integral Legislative
to this analysis will be a deep understanding of the impacted communi- Process Begins
ties. The Academy fellows are being trained and made available to help

1
Determine when
community members with this process.
the ­redistricting
• Community Advocacy / Strategy Development: Engage the communities legislative ­process
happens.
in analyzing current & proposed plans, and potentially drawing winnable The process for municipalities/
governmental entities with
maps & plan alternatives that preserve their voice in the political process. elections in the odd years
(2021) can occasionally
Academy attendees serve an important role in facilitating access between happen on an expedited basis.

interested community members and the fellows. With districted jurisdictions

that have their next elections

• Coalition & Stakeholder Alliances: Build and maintain strong broad- in an even-numbered year
(2022), because the census

based coalition and stakeholder alliances. Avoid the common data are released in 2021, the
process will likely happen in
pitfall of treating
• Communications Strategies: Design and implement communications
the first legislative session
follow receipt of census
redistricting as a data and be completed
strategies. prior to filing period for 2022
once-a-decade primaries.
• Grassroots Organizing: Build an active grassroots network by establishing
relationships of mutual confidence among like-minded individuals in the
event.
2 Make contact
with s­ omeone in
community who share common ground or interests.
legislative body to
• Resource Development: Generate resources, such as infographics, di- ­establish timeline for

rect-action templates, or toolkits. 3 ­process.

Advocate for
Generally, every organizing effort should be understood as having three earlier start/more
phases: planning, execution, and evaluation. Each of the six advocacy ca- transparency.

4
be specific
pacities listed above should be assessed for access, cost, and projected
strengths/weaknesses when applied to organizing efforts within the particular
Arrange meetings
local environment in which they will be deployed. Avoid the common pitfall *before* the
legislative process
of treating redistricting as a once-a-decade event. Census taking is a once- starts to discuss
a-decade event which informs redistricting. In many states, particularly those what the ­community
wants out of the
where CROWD Academies will be conducted in preparation for the redistrict- redistricting process
and results.
ing after the 2020 census, redistricting has been a much more frequent event.
Furthermore, even when new maps are not being formally proposed, current
maps or systems of election should be continuously monitored over the inter-
vening years between each decennial census.

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Information that the organized group wants

decisionmakers to have
Alignment Around a Shared
­Strategy At times, with ill-intentioned actors, redistricting decision-makers will rely on
ignorance in defense of unfair maps or methods of election. Coalitions work-
ing on redistricting should decide in advance what information they need
Engagement with the legislative process surrounding redistricting is most
to provide to those in charge of the process to avoid this “defense”. With
effective when organized at the group or community level, rather than on the
well-intentioned actors, the more information that coalitions can provide to
individual level. When redistricting education and engagement efforts start
inform the decision-makers, the better equipped they will be to make the
too late in the cycle, it is often the best that advocates can do to turn out
best possible decision. Particularly, information and data less readily avail-
individual citizens to redistricting hearings and provide them with generalized
able can be important to convey. Advocates must decide together which are
public comments, if that. CROWD Academies encourage discussion amongst
the communities of interest most in need of protection. They should define
advocates and community members far in advance of any legislative advo-
these communities of interest using geographic markers which are as specific
cacy or hearings in order to build as much alignment as possible. For exam-
as possible — indicating the bounds, to the best of their ability, using roads,
ple, one problem that can be caused by lack of alignment and organizing be-
rivers, or any other visible boundaries. Advocates should decide whether there
fore engaging in legislative advocacy could be wildly divergent descriptions
are economic engines — companies, schools, recreation centers, or any other
of communities of interest. If individuals are urged to attend public hearings
beneficial entity or site — that those communities benefit from having in their
and advocate that line-drawers respect communities of interest, but none
district. Giving information like this to decision-makers early in the process
of those individuals define a community of interest or the each provide their
allows them a chance to either listen to the community or not, but may open
own, highly variable definition of a community of interest in their region, ill-in-
up avenues for a challenge to the maps later if they do not.
tentioned map-makers will likely use this to the community’s disadvantage.
They will say, “See? Communities of interest are not a broadly understood
Likewise, the community working on redistricting should decide whether it
and agreed upon redistricting criteria, so we cannot possibly respect those
wants to offer a map of its own for legislative consideration or just provide
communities!” Or they will pick the proffered community of interest defini-
feedback or critique of legislatively-proposed maps. Either option may have
tion that most suits their redistricting interests, regardless of what might best
its own advantages and disadvantages. The process of drawing a single
serve the most community members. This hurdle can be avoided by group
community-supported or “unity” map can be very educational and consen-
decision-making before legislative advocacy begins. Moreover, even once the
sus-building. There is little that provides deeper understanding of how redis-
redistricting process has begun, continued alignment on goals and communi-
tricting works than actually drawing lines and seeing the outcomes. However,
cations with legislative bodies will increase the likelihood of success.
building consensus around a single community-proposed map can be diffi-
cult. Opponents will critique that map, and ask community advocates to de-
To that end, there are at least three buckets of information around which
fend it on every possible grounds. Any weakness in the community-proposed
coalitions working on redistricting should try to build alignment. Those are: (1)
map can be exploited by ill-intentioned line-drawers to justify their failure to
information that decision-makers should have in the redistricting process; (2)
adopt it. That of course does not mean that a community should not offer a
process outcomes the group would like to see; and (3) substantive outcomes
map — the coalition simply needs to weigh the relative risks and make a deci-
the group would like to see.
sion that best serves their unique interests.

Likewise, a community coalition should decide if it will additionally provide

specific feedback on legislatively-proposed maps, either in addition or in
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lieu of developing its own map. Will that feedback be offered regarding the political data cannot be excluded because it would leave mapmakers unable
process by which the maps were developed, or the substance of them? Will to assess Voting Rights Act compliance, community advocates might con-
positive feedback be given in addition to negative feedback? Again, ill-inten- sider whether consideration of electoral data could be used to ensure fair-
tioned decision-makers may try to exploit positive feedback. Will feedback ness, or whether map-drawers would just abuse the availability of that data.
be delivered via written commentary or in-person at hearings? As with many Incumbent residences are another consideration that advocates may want to
topics in this text, the answers to these questions are highly variable depend- exclude from the data used by legislative bodies. If these topics are discussed
ing on a community’s needs and whether the legislative body engaged in in advance of the legislative process, advocates will have time to build align-
redistricting is likely to act in good faith. ment and present a more unified message to decision-makers.

What process goals does the organized Demands re: Transparency and Participatory Process
group want to demand? Advocates should decide what kind of process they want to see employed
to develop new electoral maps, what elements of such a process are most
Often in redistricting, advocates may be very focused on the outcomes they
important to them, and communicate that decision to the legislative body in
desire — that is, whether the districts themselves reflect racial and partisan
advance of the commencement of the redistricting process. Even a commu-
fairness, or respect communities of interest. But the process by which those
nity that is well-versed in the law and mechanics of redistricting will struggle
outcomes are achieved can be just as important, and when that process is
to influence the maps if the legislative process is not transparent or fails to
well-defined and transparent, it can increase the odds of better outcomes.
provide opportunities for meaningful public input. Communities must push
Thus, community members should decide on the process demands they
their elected officials to adopt best practices to make sure the processes and
will deliver to map-drawers, both with respect to the data that those deci-
criteria for collecting public input and ultimately drawing the lines results in a
sion-makers will use and prioritize, as well as what the community expects in
fair, representative map.
terms of openness and transparency of the redistricting process itself.

Some hallmarks of an inclusive and accountable legislative process include:

Defining the criteria used and prioritized
Earlier in this text, traditional redistricting criteria were defined and discussed. • Public Input The redistricting body should provide several opportunities
Many times, though, there may be some flexibility in which criteria are prior- and methods for the public to provide their input about their communi-
itized or even used, and thus can be a powerful input-point for community ties and the district lines drawn around them, both before and during the
advocates. After determining what criteria are mandated, or whether the pri- redistricting process.
ority of those criteria has been formally established, advocates should review
the list of traditional redistricting criteria and decide which ones are most In order to receive truly representative input from the public, the redis-
important to them. They should not hesitate to list the order in which they tricting body must ensure that the methods for providing public input
would like those criteria to be considered or prioritized. are widely accessible. For statewide redistricting efforts, such as for state
legislative and congressional districts, the legislature should provide public
Likewise, the community should decide if there are criteria or considerations hearings at geographically diverse locations throughout the state. While
that they do not want decision-makers to consider. It is rarely advisable or there is always room for improvement, the geographic locations in which
even legal for racial data to be excluded from consideration, but if the Voting North Carolina held its redistricting hearings last cycle offer a good exam-
Rights Act does not compel the drawing of any particular district, a commu- ple of the type of diversity that should be provided in a state:
nity might to demand limits on how racial data should dictate how lines are
drawn — i.e., no precincts split predominantly on the basis of race. While all
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2011 Redistricting Public Hearing Sites

and pre-map public hearings alone are not sufficient. After the census
data has been received and after maps have been proposed, redistricting
bodies should hold listening tours (keeping in mind geographic diversity)
to hear from individuals about the features of their communities and the
ways in which their populations have changed that cannot be captured
by population figures alone. For example, a new housing development or
the introduction of a new job-providing industry in a region might repre-
sent a common interest that ties parts of a town or multiple towns togeth-
er in a way that they were not tied together in the previous decade. Take
note of the steps taken by the redistricting body to raise awareness of the
public meetings or hearings they arrange, as advocates can play a role
Source: North Carolina General Assembly Redistricting Archives – 2011 Redistricting Process https://www.ncleg.gov/Files/GIS/ in alerting the public to this opportunity when the redistricting body does
ReferenceDocs/2011/2011%20Public%20Hearing%20Site%20Map.pdf
not. The failure of the redistricting body to take adequate steps to ensure
the public is aware of opportunities may be an area where the process
Adequate notice must be provided to make sure not only that the com- needs to improve.
munity is aware of the opportunity to participate in the process, but also
to provide community members enough time to make any arrangements Once the map-drawing process has begun, the redistricting body should
so that they may attend. For example, H.R. 1, a federal redistricting reform provide a mechanism whereby the public can submit their own proposed
bill seeking to write redistricting best practices into law, would require maps, in addition to comments. A significant period for submission of
that 14 days notice be provided for any public hearing1. Notice should be feedback and alternative proposals, as well as an additional round of
provided through both digital and print publications to reach the broadest public hearings, should follow the release of any draft map published by
possible population, regardless of internet literacy. the redistricting body. No map should be voted on as final if the public
has not been given the opportunity to voice their concerns.
Accessibility requires that hearings are held at a time and place that
accommodate the schedules of working people, such as after typical • Incorporating Feedback Providing opportunities for public feedback
business hours or on weekends. Options for remote access to each public would be of little use if the redistricting body did not consider and incor-

hearing — such as through a live video or audio stream, and a method to porate the feedback that it received. Even where the redistricting body

submit comments remotely — such as a web portal, should additionally be does take the time to consider critiques of its maps and proposed chang-

provided for individuals who cannot attend hearings in person but want to es, communities will likely feel disincentivized or discouraged from pro-

be involved in the process. Opportunity to submit public comment should viding feedback in the future if the redistricting body fails to explain how

remain open throughout the entirety of the redistricting process. public input was considered, and why certain input was or was not incor-
porated into any subsequent proposed maps. Accordingly, redistricting

To maximize opportunities to receive input, the redistricting body can be- bodies should not only give due consideration to the feedback that they

gin to hold public meetings or hearings before receiving the data from the receive, but should also take steps to inform the public about how their

census bureau to hear the general concerns and values of various commu- feedback ultimately impacted the maps that have been produced.

nities, and open up the public comment period at this time. But pre-data 1
H.R. 1, § 2413
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One way that redistricting bodies can make the public aware of the this website should be used to make all proposed maps and relevant
impact their feedback has had on the proposed maps is by publishing a statistical data available to the public. Additionally, all contracted experts
report simultaneously with any proposed maps that explains in writing involved in developing this data should be identified to the public, as well
how the maps address public comments and concerns. This is the method as their compensation levels and where the funds used to pay for their
that the United States House of Representatives has sought to implement services were sourced from (i.e. campaign funds, taxpayer dollars, etc.).
through H.R. 1. In addition to producing a written report, the California This information is the bare minimum required for individuals and com-
Citizens Redistricting Commission, which has won awards for its radically munities to evaluate whether a proposed map represents their interests.
transparent process, has devised an even more interactive, engaging, and Beyond this bare minimum, redistricting bodies should also conduct their
responsive method for incorporating public feedback — the Commission decision-making process within the public eye, including disclosure of all
in many cases incorporates public feedback and provides its explana- underlying data, information, and communications considered in the actu-
tions for doing so live, in video-broadcasted public meetings. Community al construction of proposed maps.
members giving feedback can review maps together with those in charge
of drawing the maps, and literally watch as their feedback is considered
• Predetermined Criteria Another way a redistricting body can make itself
more accountable to the people it represents in the redistricting process
and attempts are made to incorporate requested changes into the maps.
is by publishing the criteria that it will use in drawing the maps before they
Examples of this process at work can be found in the extensive video
begin drawing them. While transparency and forthrightness by a redis-
archives on the Commission’s website (https://wedrawthelines.ca.gov/view-
tricting body is important, it is crucial that, in addition to alerting the pub-
er/) or YouTube channel (Citizens Redistricting Commission). Incorporating
lic to the criteria selected beforehand, the redistricting body also selects
feedback in this way not only makes the process clearer to the public, but
only those criteria that will result in a fair and representative map. Not all
also incentivizes public participation in the redistricting process because
criteria are created equal, and willingness to be transparent about use of
it makes clear to individuals that their input is valued and can make a
a bad criterion will not undo the negative effects that bad criterion will
concrete difference.
have on a map.
• Transparency While the open, public incorporation of feedback is a good
start, every aspect of the redistricting process must be transparent — that As discussed, certain criteria are required by law and therefore must be
is, open to public scrutiny — to ensure that communities have all of the used by the mapdrawers. Redistricting bodies should nonetheless make a
information they need to be involved in the process, and to ensure that commitment to abide by and prioritize these mandatory criteria:
the redistricting body is fully accountable to the community for which it is
drafting district lines. As an added bonus, building as much transparency In addition to reaffirming their commitment to these mandatory require-
as possible into the redistricting process promotes increased trust in that ments, redistricting bodies can expand upon them, providing more protec-
process, and in the governmental unit engaging in that process. There are tion than might be required by federal law. For example, while the Voting
several steps that a redistricting body can and should take to increase the Rights Act can require that districts be drawn to protect a single minority
transparency of the redistricting process, and the redistricting body can group, courts are divided about whether the Voting Rights Act requires
pass procedural rules to bind itself to these transparency measures. protection of multiple minority groups that vote together as a coalition.
Redistricting bodies can alter their Voting Rights Act Compliance criteria
As a starting point, the redistricting body should provide an easily accessi- to explicitly allow for protection of minority groups acting in coalition and
ble public website and/or terminal that will serve as the location where all to promote the creation of coalition districts.
redistricting-related information can be accessed by the public. In addi-
tion to providing notices of public hearings or a public comment portal,
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What outcomes do organized community groups want to

demand?
One of the greatest challenges in redistricting engagement is that the kinds
of districts which communities may desire or wish to demand will vary widely
from jurisdiction to jurisdiction. Perhaps one of the greatest challenges advo-
cates will confront in this process is the wide degree of competing opinions
regarding the kinds of districts communities wish to achieve from jurisdiction How to Address Lack of Alignment
to jurisdiction. Consultation with CROWD Academy Fellows and legal sup-
Coalition building, particularly when the coalition includes numerous stake-
port teams will be critical in informing a group’s decision on what outcomes
holders bearing different concerns, requires a level of alignment that allows
it should expect and request. For example, because of population changes,
those various divergent concerns to be melded into one coherent agenda for
it may not always be possible to maintain the core of a pre-existing district,
advocacy by the group. This will enable it to operate united as one coalitional
even if the community liked that district and it provided effective represen-
entity. CROWD Scholars must not disheartened by the lack of alignment they
tation. Likewise, even in an instance when a district that provides an under-
may confront at the beginning of their preparations to engage the legisla-
served racial group with the opportunity to elect its candidate of choice is
tive process. This is to be expected, especially if they managed to organize
desperately needed and morally justifiable, such a district may not be feasible
effective outreach to the variety of voices that should be represented in any …the process of
to draw in a manner that complies with the exacting standards of Section 2 of
given CROWD coalition. Certainly advocates will want to be mindful to resist internal goal-goal
the Voting Rights Act. That does not mean that the district is not allowed to
any inclination within the group to pretend competing interests or alignment setting is a crucial
be drawn — it just means that the jurisdiction may not be compelled to draw it.
challenges don’t exist when conducting internal goal-setting. step because it is key
to sending the most
But some outcome possibilities that community advocates should consider, in Dealing with these potential alignment challenges in the process of internal cohesive demands
consultation with Fellows and legal support, include: goal-goal setting is a crucial step because it is key to sending the most co- possible.
hesive demands possible. Failure to do so may leave a group open to having
» preventing destruction of minority opportunity districts
its credibility attacked and undermined by the legislators who prefer that the
» creation of new opportunity districts
community’s advocacy agenda not impinge upon their own self-interested
» moving from at-large to single-member districts intentions for redistricting. Indeed, legislators have been known to claim that
» respecting communities of interest the community of interest criterion is not a practicable one, because there is
» and many others no agreed upon definition of a community of interest.

The CROWD Academies were designed to provide community advocates

with the information and access to resources necessary to determine what
kind of outcome demands community groups can make and reasonably ex-
pect to produce results.

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Additional Considerations for

Legislative Advocacy Strategy
What Would a Jurisdiction Need to Submit
Implementation For Section 5 Preclearance
To satisfy the Attorney General and obtain preclearance, a jurisdiction
Many of the strategies and steps for successful implementation of redistrict-
would have to provide evidence on the following considerations:
ing legislative advocacy have already been discussed, but there are a few
other considerations that community groups may take into account.
• The extent to which malapportioned districts deny or abridge the right to
vote of minority citizens.

• The extent to which minority voting strength is reduced by the proposed

Strategies for Demanding Data Needed for redistricting.
Detailed Map Analysis • The extent to which minority concentrations are fragmented among
­different districts.
The effective loss of Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act has been a devas-
tating development in the realm of voting rights. Section 5 required covered • The extent to which minorities are over concentrated in one or more
jurisdictions to explain their redistricting plan—to explain how it would not ­districts.
injure communities of color, that it was not developed with discriminatory • The extent to which available alternative plans satisfying the jurisdiction's
intent, that the process was open and participatory, etc. That allowed advo- legitimate governmental interests were considered.
cates to test justifications and highlight weaknesses. However, it is possible
that the fact that many formerly-covered jurisdictions had to comply with the
• The extent to which the plan departs from objective redistricting criteria
set by the submitting jurisdiction, ignores other relevant factors such as
additional demands of Section 5 the last time they redistricted, those juris-
compactness and contiguity, or displays a configuration that inexplicably
dictions may be “used” to comply with those demands and may be willing
disregards available natural or artificial boundaries.
to continue with the same procedures they have always used. That is, anec-
dotally, some jurisdictions have commented to voting rights advocates that • The extent to which the plan is inconsistent with the jurisdiction's stated
going through the Section 5 preclearance process was not that burdensome redistricting standards.
and in fact lent legitimacy to the jurisdiction’s adopted plan if precleared.
Thus, while the odds might not be high, advocates should consider asking
jurisdictions to voluntarily comply with the kinds of information they would
have to submit in order to obtain preclearance, but to just make that infor-
mation publicly available.

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Confrontational
Assessing the Need for an Outside / Inside
Strategy MORE RISK

Strong grassroots organizing provides coalitions with an opportunity to de- Public

Demonstrations
ploy a simultaneous outside/inside strategy. The “outside” part of the strategy
refers to utilizing public means of persuasion through confrontational direct Private Public
action activities, like sit-ins in front of the legislative building or staging some
Face-to-Face
other form of public protest. These strategies tend to carry with them a high- Meetings
er level of risk, but if executed well, the reward will be a higher impact. Public
methods often draw earned media attention, resulting in a process shone on
the issue itself and the response of the target(s). The “inside” piece requires LESS RISK
activists to identify individuals with relationships to decisionmakers to lobby
Collaborative
on their behalf for the desired advocacy objectives. This method carries less
risk because it happens behind closed doors. When coordinated simultane-
ously, two sides of a single strategy, this combination of tactics can enhance
Credit: Sprechmann, Sofia and Emily Pelton, "Advocacy Tools
the level of impact a coalition can have on decision-makers. and Guidelines: Promoting Policy Change. A Resource Manual
for CARE Program Managers."

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Post-Implementation Strategy
Analysis — Metrics of Success
and Building Capacity for Future
Organizing Efforts When an assessment indicates that the strategy is not working, it means that
some aspect of the approach needs revision. Again, evaluation is an abso-
A commitment to remain willing to adapt and improvise will also allow advo- lutely necessary tool in effective organizing, and that evaluation should be
cates to maximize the benefit to be gained from evaluating successes. Evalu- used to adjust accordingly. Changing strategy based on evaluation is com-
ation is a crucial part of any organizing campaign. There is one golden rule of pletely acceptable, even encouraged.
evaluation: do not wait until the end of your campaign to do it. As you exe-
cute your strategy and tactics, assess and evaluate your efforts. Efforts should Every grassroots advocacy group should keep in mind that there are two
be evaluated and assessed real-time during the execution of strategy and kinds of success to track — internal and external success. External success is
tactics. There are many methods to conduct evaluation, but even the follow- defined by whether the group has achieved its goals and objectives; Internal
ing simple approach will do — ask the group members to answer the following success is defined by what the group has learned in pursuit of those goals and
three questions: objectives. Even when external successes are few, internal successes are often
the key to unlocking a coalition or group’s ability to fulfill its external goals in
1. Is our strategy achieving the desired results — are we closer to the goal? the future. In the organizing world, it is indeed typical that a campaign will
2. What is working and what is not — internally and externally? have been implemented multiple times before its objectives are achieved.

3. Are the tactics employed (actions) helping the group gain support? Often, the first few times advocates cycle through a campaign without much
external success, they find that those cycles are the most packed with internal
successes. Each organizational advance made in the way of internal success
Evaluation of the strategy and its results may lead a group to conclude that
translates to a leap closer the external goals, until they finally are within reach.
the reason they have not met its goal is because the strategy was not fully de-
veloped. For instance, perhaps the “target” of the group’s efforts may not have
had the power to make the change the group sought, or maybe the timing of
the campaign was not quite right; or a group might conclude that the strate-
gy and tactics used were correct, but not sufficient in number or frequency.

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CHAPTER 8

Communications
Strategies Used in
the Redistricting
Process

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Redistricting in a post-Section 5 world and more generally, in the current po- of positioning an advocate or community group as the actor who achieves
litical climate in the South, comes with no guarantees. A community educat- and maintains the most control of the narrative. The right communications
ed and mobilized to hold decision-makers accountable is in the best position strategy facilitates a shared contextual framework among people learning or
to achieve the best community-desired outcomes. But “wins” should not be so engaging in the issue, and that shared framework can do wonders in support
narrowly construed. Changing the dialogue around and awareness of unfair of a particular advocacy goals. For instance, consider how it frames the issue
redistricting policies and products is a powerful outcome, in and of itself, and of climate science differently when advocates or the media refer to the prob-
community efforts to deploy effective communications strategies help secure lem as “climate change” rather than “global warming.” Use of strategic termi-
those gains. Indeed, even a “win” in terms of a desirable district being enacted nology and, more broadly, communications strategy can help those unfamil-
carries less weight if not accompanied by a strategic, coordinated communi- iar with the issue to have a deeper understanding, and can disrupt potential
cations campaign. avenues of criticism or attack.

In any sort of effort to achieve a particular outcome through a public process, Successful advocacy depends upon the organizers’ ability to effectively
the phrase “controlling the narrative” is a familiar refrain. Parties are often de- utilize proven communications strategies in an effort to achieve and main-
scribed as successfully “controlling the narrative” or not. A narrative is typically tain control of the narrative around redistricting. It is important to remember
reflected in the public discourse pertaining to a given issue, process or event. that there are various different communications strategies to choose from.
Invariably, there are multiple — even contradictory — stories that can be told Even more importantly, communications efforts must be tailored to a specific
about that same focus point. The story that gains the most traction with the target audience in order to achieve the greatest impact. This means that any
most people tends to be the one that ultimately shapes the narrative, and compelling communications strategy should incorporate careful consideration
thus determines how the issue is framed, understood and treated by society. of matching the messaging, method of delivery and narrative tools to each
Deployment of a well-crafted communications strategy is the best method particular audience the communications is intend to influence.

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participate Potential Audiences for

in the process Redistricting Communications
It is perhaps too easy to assume the only audience for redistricting advoca-
cy that matters is the body making decisions during the next redistricting
cycle — whether that is a town council, school board, or the state legislature.
These bodies are certainly important audiences, but they are not the only
ones that need to be targeted, and communications directed towards addi- Community
tional distinct audiences including allies (potential or actual), opponents, and
members
must publicly
unengaged constituencies must also be thoughtfully delivered.
demand a
While the hope is certainly that public engagement will pressure line-draw-
participatory
and responsive
ers to make the right decisions — ones that best serve the interests of the
process, and
historically disenfranchised and dismissed communities within the jurisdic-
make clear that
tion, — such an outcome may not always be feasible. Nonetheless, advocates
this is not an
can lay the proper groundwork to ensure accountability regardless. To this idle request or
end, the officials or staff tasked with redistricting should be made aware of (1) threat.
the fact that community members are aware of and, indeed, well-educated
about the redistricting process; (2) the community will be advocating for spe-
cific results, be it outcome or process results; (3) that community advocates
have access to legal and technical resources which they will avail themselves
of if the line-drawers are not responsive; and (4) that community members
will hold line-drawers accountable at the ballot box or in the courts if they
are not responsive to community needs. In short, community members must
publicly demand a participatory and responsive process, and make clear that
this is not an idle request or threat. Transparency can translate into account-
ability. The more eyes line-drawers feel watching them, the more likely they
are to be responsive to community members’ demands.

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Audiences for Redistricting Communications

Allies — Growing the coalition / number of supporters.
Messaging should be developed for allies — both current and potential — as
a distinct target audience. The goals of messaging to allies should be two-
fold: (1) to mobilize known allies whose prior or ongoing work is compatible
with your own advocacy goals and (2) to recruit and mobilize new allies. This Unengaged Constituents — People who have not had the
two pronged approach to messaging for allies will help grow the coalition by opportunity to learn about redistricting yet
increasing the number of supporters and lifting up agendas that fit together Finally, messaging should always be developed with the specific goal of
as part of the same agenda a community can pursue through redistricting by bringing unengaged constituents into the fold. This target audience may be
raising their voices together. This is exactly what CROWD Academy partners
Advocating
for an open local community members who are currently engaged in other local issues
LA Kaminski, Jovita Lee, and Marques Thompson discovered was true of their such as local education needs or racial justice matters with which the com-
redistricting
own advocacy efforts in Duplin and Sampson Counties in eastern North Car-
process for munity is already engaged. Levels of engagement may vary, depending on
olina. Read more about their success below!
school board the level of grassroots organization in a given community. For instance, some
districts, communities have churches where community members mobilize on certain
allowing local issues regularly enough to offer a strong preexisting infrastructure for
everyone a redistricting advocacy. Other communities might have advocates that have
Opponents — Who can be persuaded and what are elements
fair say in the managed to establish a particular issue as a local priority but have not yet
of commonality?
representatives managed to mobilize around that issue. Whatever the level of engagement,
Opponents should also be considered as a potential target audience. This setting school every community has at least a few concerns that it would consider a priority.
includes obstinate opponents who advocates would expect to be fully com- policies, can be
An important way communications strategy can build capacity for redistrict-
mitted in their opposition to a community redistricting advocacy agenda as a message that
ing advocacy is to engage in listening tours or other tactics to let the com-
well as those who might be persuadable. Using an intersectional approach to even opponents
munity identify its concerns and identify ways those issues may intersect with
redistricting engagement and communications, as promoted by the CROWD cannot
redistricting. Listening tours can then be followed by education and mobiliza-
Academies, can create the space for persuasion or at least present the challenge.
tion tactics that are most suited to this target audience.
strongest framing for an inclusive and fair process. For example, most parents,
regardless of their political or ideological persuasions, want to feel like they
have a say in their children’s education. Advocating for an open redistricting
process for school board districts, allowing everyone a fair say in the repre-
sentatives setting school policies, can be a message that even opponents
cannot challenge.

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Choose the Redistricting Narrative

or Narratives, Depending on
Audience and the Specific Interests
of the Community Engaged in
the Redistricting Process, and the
Messengers for those Narratives
Different narratives will resonate with different audiences. The narratives ad-
opted should be informed by the community’s goals and shared interests, as
well as the audience being targeted with the narrative.

As has been discussed in the organizing and legislative advocacy chapters,

it can be extremely effective to have a designated speaker or speakers be
agreed upon before engaging in narrative development, and having those
speakers be well-versed in the narrative itself. And although there is not a
one-size-fits-all approach to this issue, groups engaged in redistricting orga-
nizing and advocacy should ask themselves the following questions: Can a
pre-determined spokesperson address the needs and interests of the group?
If so, how will the group define itself to the public? Is the conveyor of the nar-
rative part of the group working on this particular redistricting issue or is the
conveyor being brought in after the work has been done?

There may be voices that have earned the trust of their communities such as
an individual who the community recognizes as a successful advocate from
other settings or a organizational entity such as an NAACP branch whose
work has established significant local credibility — Can these trusted messen-
gers be utilized to deliver communications on behalf of the redistricting advo-
cates? This can often be a way to save time by capitalizing on the trust that
the community has already vested in a familiar individual or group, rather
than having to start from scratch in relationship building as groups with less
recognition within the community. Can different voices or spokespeople be There may be
used for different audiences? Organizers have found in many instances that
voices that
different audiences may tend to be more or less receptive, depending on the
have earned
the trust of their
identity of the messenger.
communities…
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Narrative theme is an important consideration, too. Beyond demanding spe-

cific outcomes or processes, the larger framing employed in how advocates
What themes does the
­community want to
tell their story about redistricting in their area can maximize the impact of
messaging around an issue. So part of the planning process for redistricting
There may be
engagement should include asking: what themes does the community want
voices that
to emphasize in redistricting communications? There is no one or “correct”
answer to this inquiry. Some examples of themes that could shape the narra-
have earned
the trust of their ­emphasize in ­redistricting
tive are: communities
• Fairness and racial equity as guiding principles in developing a new plan/
such as an
individual who
communications?
system for election; this theme is particularly powerful in an area that has the community
a history of serious failure when it comes to fairness and racial equity recognizes as
a successful
• Intersection of redistricting with a particular issue(s) already recognized as These are just a few examples, not an exhaustive and story it wants to tell. Advocates and organiz-
advocate…
a local priority, i.e. education, environment, or safety concerns list. It is important to get any redistricting advo- ers should allow for sufficient space for community

• Dark money in politics and its intersection with redistricting; This issue cacy coalition to discuss how the chosen theme members to discuss how the redistricting process

tends to overlap with the intersectional approach discussed throughout has or has not been utilized or received in previ- has directly affected them in past cycles and what

the Academy — for instance, media coverage of environmental redistricting ous redistricting cycles. Next, the group discussion story they want to tell about that history. Tradi-

work in eastern North Carolina drew connections between dark money, should turn to developing a sense of what it would tionally silenced voices should be lifted up, and

environmental destruction and redistricting by highlighting that candi- look like for the upcoming map (and the process of an equity-conscious communications strategy is

dates who received campaign contributions from the corporate owners developing it) to embody the chosen theme. careful to ensure these voices have the agency to

of environmental hazards were also the candidates who most supported tell their own story.
At the end of the day, while the history of redis-
proposed legislation that would limit the ability of citizens to file nuisance
tricting throughout the country and certainly in the
lawsuits. This was an unmistakable attack by corporate interests on the
South has been one of a tool used to suppress the
power of citizens to push back against them, because such lawsuits had
voices of voters of color, each community has its
been very successful in enabling citizens to use the courts as a tool for
own unique experiences, shared values and goals,
accountability prior to the introduction of the proposed legislation.

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 Redistricting Communications
Success Story
After running into each other at the same community events in these two deprived of their voice when districts are drawn detrimentally based on race,
counties over and over again, organizers LA Kaminski, Jovita Lee and as has been the practice far too often in North Carolina.
Marques Thompson finally realized that there was a narrative gap in their
each of their communications strategies, particularly when it came to think- It became increasingly clear that to advocate effectively on any one of these
ing about how to create structural change. They each had been organizing issues, a new, more intersectional approach was needed. In order to develop
in the same communities for different reasons. LA had been organizing and a new communications strategy, LA, Jovita and Marques began by coming
educating eastern North Carolina communities around opposition to CAFOs together to conduct a series of listening tours in Eastern NC. Through the
(Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations, e.g. hog farms) as the democra- listening tours, they learned that the communities knew the issues well, but
cy campaigner for an environmental advocacy group called Friends of the that they did not realize how they were all connected. They were well-versed
Earth. Marques was organizing around fair and accessi- in the environmental concerns that affected their health and their properties.
ble elections as the Eastern North Carolina organizer for Too often, the narrative They were also aware of the ways in which gerrymanders are a problematic
Democracy NC. Jovita had been working on opposition around redistricting is limited and pervasive reality in redistricting, especially in North Carolina. Community
to the Atlantic Coast Pipeline, the Mountain Valley Pipe- by talking about maps only members had not previously considered the ways in which the environmental
line Southgate, off-shore drilling and CAFOs as the State in partisan or racial terms, issues were converging with democracy issues in ways that explained why
Campaigner for the Center of Biodiversity. The same com- without giving enough these particular communities were so directly impacted, over and over again.
munities seemed to be suffering from a recurring cycle of attention to defining and The next step was to conduct education and mobilization tours that focused
harm affected by these issue areas. One year CAFOs was defending communities of on issues by reframing them as interconnected. This narrative shift is an ex-
the dominant concern of the community. Another year, interest. cellent example of a communications strategy that reveals an opportunity for
the most pressing concern was the pipeline. Yet another connecting and multiplying the impact of multiple strands of advocacy work.
year, Hurricane Florence brought flooding that resulted
in communities swamped with pig excrement, without any assistance from Too often, the narrative around redistricting is limited by talking about maps
public officials with the cleanup. Throughout these challenges, advocates had only in partisan or racial terms, without giving enough attention to defining
struggles ensuring that county election officials offered sufficient voting loca- and defending communities of interest. On top of that, those who currently
tions and opportunities in rural eastern NC. Environmental issues and democ- benefit from a position of authority in redistricting have made a sustained
racy issues seemed to be converging on the same communities which found and thus far too successful communications effort to peddle a narrative that
themselves repeatedly victimized with little power or access to relief. CAFOs frames redistricting as inaccessible to anyone who is not a professional in
and pipelines often were located in the backyards of the same communities the field. Shifting the narrative as these three organizers have done through
that tended to be disempowered and disenfranchised from the democratic a careful reinvention of their formerly separate communications strategies is
process. Not only have these communities been used as a dumping ground emblematic of the intersectional lens CROWD hopes community advocates
for industrial waste, but the very same folks have also been the ones who are can employ in their redistricting engagement.

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Mechanisms of influencing the narrative

Controlling or Influencing the Regardless of the audience, communication with that audience should be

Narrative in the Redistricting early and often. Letters to the editors and op-eds can be very effective ways
of ensuring that widely-supported and vetted messages are broadly heard.
Process, Especially Via Media For letters to editors, advocates, or supportive community members will need
to submit responses to articles or opinion pieces the same or next day after
Once the various audiences have been identified, and the appropriate mes- When an those articles are published, or plan in advance to write letters/op-eds to be
saging targeted at each audience has been settled, advocates should next issue arises or published sometime during the week before the expected redistricting-related
then focus on influencing the narrative part of their message. One key to there is a new event. Advocates can and should also make use and distribute information
narrative control is sustained substantive engagement with various forms of
redistricting- via social media. It can be useful to stay current on how various social media
related platforms are used, and by whom. For example, general wisdom currently has
media. These media outlets can include local or national print or television
development, it that Facebook users skew towards the older demographic, whereas young-
news, radio shows, and social media platforms such as Facebook or Twitter.
advocates
Advocates need to make regularly recurring investments in the content and er users tend to use Snapchat. Twitter tends to be where people go to have
should make
news media cycle. When an issue arises or there is a new redistricting-related politically-oriented discussions, while Instagram has become a place where
their best effort
development, advocates should make their best effort to get ahead of ex- users will find more lifestyle-oriented content. Note that it is always a good
to get ahead of
idea to double check the current trends on which demographics gravitate
pected news media interest. This can be done by being the first to frame the expected news
development within the broader narrative. Additionally, that framing should media interest. towards which social media platforms, and how users tend interact with those
be more frequently repeated in a greater variety of media avenues than any platforms in terms of content type and optimization (i.e. pictures tend to get
other competing framing. A nationally familiar example of competing narra- more views than text alone, while videos get still more views in social me-
tives seeking to frame the same issue can be found in the controversy around dia posts; add a puppy or kitten, and views are even more likely to increase!
voter ID. Two competing narratives sought to frame a voter ID requirement at Content type, length, etc., are all factors that will influence your social media
ballot boxes as either a voter fraud prevention tactic or a voter suppression reach in very specific, predictable ways). These trends are very dynamic, and
tactic in recent years. While this battle is ongoing, opponents and proponents thus advocates should stay up to date on the most current snapshot.
of voter ID try to flood the media market with their framing of the issue.
In addition to optimizing content on social media, it can be beneficial to un-
In addition to rapid response tactics to address new developments that will derstand SEO (search engine optimization). Deliberate SEO initiative can be
come up organically as community members engage in advocacy work, extremely useful in elevating your messaging to appear in top Google search
advocates should also plan to deploy certain messaging along the standard results when certain search terms are used. In the example of environmental
Twitter tends
timeline their local government bodies use for redistricting. Community mem- redistricting, this means considering what the most likely search terms are for
to be where
bers working on redistricting can and should propose a story in time for it to people interested in learning more about the intersection of environmental people go to
be in newspaper or on TV the weekend before a redistricting-related hearing and redistricting issues. While SEO is a very technical skill which can be- have politically-
or vote. If media coverage of that event is already likely, advocates should come extremely expensive rather quickly, simply running likely search terms oriented
conduct early outreach to the journalists or commentators likely to cover the in Google can be an efficient method of gauging current levels of interest in discussions…
event to make sure that the community’s perspective is represented.

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a particular topic. Google offers very accessible guides on more precise use
of their search engine to specify searches to reflect certain geographic areas
or time frames, in addition to offering instructions on fun search methods like
Google image search. These tools are available for free to anyone with an
internet connection and can all be rather useful in assessing the landscape
for your advocacy work.

advocate for your

This text is, of course, meant to offer a variety of options for advocates, not
prescribe necessary digital communications for successful redistricting advo-

community
cacy. Any efforts that can be made to establish a digital presence on vari-
Advocates
ous platforms, such as a trending hashtag on Twitter or viral internet meme, should produce
ahead of the issue or new development and over the long game will help quality content
advocates with their cause. Advocates should produce quality content (or ob- … that informs
tain such content from redistricting fellows or CROWD Academy conveners) the audience of
that informs the audience of gerrymandering and other redistricting issues gerrymandering
and offers solutions to these identified problems. This capacity for effective and other
communication will build trust among targeted audiences. redistricting
issues and offers
Additionally, we should partner with other organizations to hold forums, solutions to
community events. Large events will help to spread the word about shared these identified
narrative. These events can entice more media coverage of redistricting and problems.
community engagement in redistricting. These events can be utilized to tell
the stories of people impacted by redistricting-related issues.

Finally, redistricting advocates should also consider signing on to letters

addressing redistricting related issues, particularly those addressed to legis-
lative leaders. While discussed in the legislative advocacy strategy chapter,
the attendance of meetings in large numbers can also be a powerful com-
munication strategy, especially when documented well, either by or for local
media outlets.

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Story-telling to Control the Narrative

Regardless of the way in which a community attempts to influence the
redistricting narrative, it is very effective to utilize elements of storytelling to
reinforce the chose narrative. The following are important story-telling com-
ponents to incorporate into any narrative:

Republican
The Conflict
The “conflict” is the backbone of narrative: what defines the drama, point of
view, and makes the story interesting. The conflict here may concern the gut-
Democrat
ting of the Voting Rights Act and/or the history of voting maps being drawn
unfairly, particularly to the disadvantage of communities of color. The dilution
of voting power that gerrymandering creates for voters forced to cast a ballot CROWD
in an unfairly-drawn district defines the drama surrounding this conflict. As a Academy
result, representatives responsible for making decisions that are important to attendees,
their constituents are allowed to ignore their constituents’ demands because fellows,
there is no fear of being voted out office. community
advocates
and partner
organizations are
The Characters the narrators of
the story. Imagery Foreshadowing
The “characters” are the subjects, protagonists, and narrators of stories. The
protagonists are the voters in the South, in the particular state, or in the “Imagery” is language designed to capture imagi- “Foreshadowing” involves the ways that a story
particular county or town that are at risk of having their vote silenced. In nation with metaphor, anecdote, and descriptions provides hints to its outcome. The history of ger-
many ways, the protagonists of the narrative are the same individuals who that speak to the senses and make the story tan- rymandering foreshadows the potential for even
constitute our audience: the individuals that are interested in learning more gible. The maps themselves are powerful images more people to be disenfranchised if nothing is
about redistricting and ensuring that it is done fairly in their community. The that can be used to narrate this story. Diagrams done to make certain that redistricting is done fair-
subjects include the history of gerrymandering and its impact on the country, and graphics, like the ones above, can be powerful ly. For example, the courts have often been inade-
layers of protection such as Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act being eroded in showing, for example, how many seats the dom- quate safeguards for community of colors. Absent
over time, the latest United States Supreme Court decision failing to provide inant political party or racial group that controls intervention — here, increased community engage-
protection for voters, and lastly, options for addressing this issue. CROWD the legislative body has obtained despite voter ment and oversight — that detrimental trend could
Academy attendees, fellows, community advocates and partner organiza- turnout. be reasonably be expected to continue, resulting
tions are the narrators of the story. These individuals and groups have been in a loss of so many of the representational gains
fighting these issues for decades and have witnessed the impact of maps made by voters of color over the last few decades.
being drawn unfairly.
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Gerrymandering in NC
2010 2018
Election Election

7 Congressional
Seats 45 % Democratic
Votes 6 Congressional
Seats 54 % Republican
Votes 3 Congressional
Seats 48.4 % Democratic
Votes 10 Congressional
Seats 50.03 % Republican
Votes

Underlying Assumptions
Lastly, “underlying assumptions” are unstated
parts of the story that must be accepted in order
to believe the narrative is true. One underlying
assumption is that some politicians currently in
power have demonstrated the capability to drawn
maps unfairly and silence those that will not vote
for them in order to retain power. Voters have to
check their power otherwise even more votes could
be suppressed than the previous decade. Advo-
cates and communicators should be aware of the
underlying assumptions they are relying upon and
those they may need to rebut.
162
 not constitute a majority, but the group’s voters still have pare voting patterns in “homogeneous precincts” – that Political Subdivisions are local governments created by

Glossary
an opportunity to elect their preferred candidate, in this is, election precincts that are composed of a single racial/ the states to help fulfill their obligations. They include
case due to predictable levels of support from the typically ethnic group. counties, cities, towns, villages, and special districts such as
white voters in the majority. school districts, water districts, park districts, and airport
districts.
Cumulative Voting allows as many votes as there are
candidates.
I Precedent is a principle or rule established in a previous
legal case that is either binding on or persuasive for a
Incumbent an official who is currently holding office. court or other tribunal when deciding subsequent cases
with similar issues or facts. (See, Case Law)
D Influence District a district in which minority voters are not
a majority and do not have an opportunity to elect their Preservation of Cores of Prior Districts refers to maintain-
Declination determines the difference in how a party’s candidate of choice, but they do have an opportunity to ing districts as previously drawn, to the extent possible.
This leads to continuity of representation.
A
vote fraction changes between districts it won and districts help choose the winner from among the majority white or
it lost. Anglo (and sometimes other) candidates contesting that
Prima Facie Case a case in which the evidence produced
election.
Abridgement the act or process of abridging; to reduce or Disaggregating to separate (an aggregate or mass) into its is sufficient to enable a decision or verdict to be made
lessen in duration, scope, authority, etc.; diminish; curtail. component parts; reveal patterns that can be masked by unless the evidence is rebutted.
larger, aggregate data

L
B Limited Voting voters have fewer votes than there are R
Bivariate Ecological Regression Analysis a statistical pro- E office seats.
Racially Polarized Voting exists when voters of different
cess that can also estimate how races or ethnicities vote Ecological Inference Analysis uses even more information racial or ethnic backgrounds exercise distinct candidate
using aggregate levels of areas, such as precincts. about each precinct than bivariate ecological regression preferences in an election.
analysis by incorporating the method of bounds into the
calculation of the estimates. M Reapportionment the reassignment of representatives pro-
portionally among the states in accordance with changes
C
Maximum Deviation is the range by which the most over-
Efficiency Gap calculates the difference in the number of in population distribution
represented constituency differs from the most underrepre-
votes wasted by each party. sented constituency. Responsiveness estimates the change in the number of
Case Law the collection of past legal decisions written by
courts and similar tribunals in the course of deciding cases, Electoral District a territorial subdivision for electing mem- seats that are won based upon the change in the number
Method of Bounds is used in combination with maximum
in which the law was analyzed using these cases to resolve bers to a legislative body. Ex., election district, legislative of votes for a party.
likelihood statistics to produce estimates of voting patterns
ambiguities for deciding current cases. district, voting district, constituency, riding, ward, division, by race. Rough Proportionality determines “whether minorities
precinct, electoral area, circumscription, or electorate.
Census-Designated Place (CDP) a concentration of have the opportunity to elect representatives of their
population defined by the United States Census Bureau for Endogenous Election one that occurs in the jurisdiction at choice in a number of districts roughly proportional to the
statistical purposes only.  issue in a VRA Section 2 case. percentage of minority voters in the population as a whole.
O
Coalition District where more than one protected minority Equal Vote Weight computes the difference between a
groups are combined to form a majority in a district. party’s median value district vote count and mean (aver- One Person One Vote (OPOV) the principal that the

Communities of Interest refers to a group of people with

age) district vote count. Equal Protection Clause of the United States Constitution
requires legislative voting districts to have about the same S
a common set of concerns that may be affected by legis- Exogenous Election one that overlaps geographically with, population. Satellite Annexations This occurs primarily in municipal
lation. Examples of communities of interest include ethnic, but is unrelated to the jurisdiction at issue. redistricting, where an incorporated municipality has one
racial, and economic groups and can vary by state. or more “satellite annexations” that are not contiguous with
the primary corporate limits.
Compactness refers to the principle that the constituents
P
residing within an electoral district should live as near to
one another as possible. Compactness can be measured
F Packing concentrating the opposing party's voting power
Stacking Stacking occurs when lower turnout minority
voters are included in a district which has the appearance
as a ratio of the circumference of a district and its total File Transfer Protocol (FTP) Site Computer that allows in one district to reduce their voting power in other sur- of being majority-minority (viewing voting age population).
area downloading (and uploading in some cases) of files by the rounding districts.
use of an FTP site over the internet. State Legislative Districts Up to a ten percentage point
Comparative Analysis (Benchmark Plan) this technique Partisan Symmetry estimates the number of seats won deviation, under certain circumstances.
compares the proposed plan to another plan (or multiple based upon the number of votes for a party.
plans), which in most cases, is the plan currently in effect. Statutory Laws is the term used to define written laws, usu-

G Persuasive Authority legal writings that may help guide a ally enacted by a legislative body.
Contiguity All parts of a single district must be connected court in reaching a decision, but which are not binding. 
to the rest of the district. It refers to the rule that electoral Strict Scrutiny is the most stringent level of scrutiny
Geographic Files (e.g. shapefile) files that are joined with
districts in a state be physically adjacent. A district is con- Point Contiguity In this variation, two parts of a district are applied by the courts to determine if there is an equal
the tabulation files in order to attach demographic infor-
sidered contiguous if all parts of the district are in physical connected only by a single point. protection violation.
mation to a specific location on a map.
contact with some other part of the district.
Political Boundaries the boundaries of other governments,
Cracking refers to dividing a minority voting group into such as cities, towns, or counties, and political divisions,
two or more districts with the effect of diluting minority
voting strength and rendering voters of color unable to H
such as city council wards or state legislative districts. In
drawing electoral districts, a state may take these political T
elect their candidate of choice in any district boundaries into account in order to keep existing constitu- Tabulation Files contain the demographic data collected
Homogeneous Precinct Analysis The simplest method for encies within one district rather than splitting them across by the Census, which are presented in four tables.
Crossover District a district in which a minority group does estimating voting behavior by race/ethnicity is to com- multiple districts.

164
 Totality of Circumstances A test originally formulated to
evaluate whether a defendant’s constitutional rights were
violated in the eliciting of a confession. It concentrates on
looking at all the circumstances surrounding the alleged

violation.

V
Voting Age Population (VAP) refers to the set of individ-
uals that have reached the minimum voting age for a
particular geographical or political unit.

Voting Rights Act (VRA) of 1965 a landmark piece of

federal legislation in the United States that prohibits racial
discrimination in voting.

Voting Tabulation District (VTD) the wide variety of

small polling areas, such as election districts, precincts, or
wards, that State and local governments create for the
purpose of administering elections.

W
Water Contiguity Some districts have multiple areas com-
pletely separated by water with no connection by land,
however this is generally accepted as contiguous for the
purposes of redistricting

166
Districting
of the People,
by the People,
for the People.