State Legislative Redistricting after the 2020 Census
After more than a year of committee meetings, public comment periods, and court challenges, the newly-redrawn district boundaries for 49 of the 50 state legislatures have been set. The lone exception is Montana, whose legislature will begin drawing new maps when they reconvene next year. Most new district boundaries are being used for the 2022 midterms, while some states will not hold elections in their new districts until 2023 or so.
The Cicero team has been adding new boundaries to our database shortly after their enactment. As the midterm elections approach, we want to provide a few updates and reflections on state legislative redistricting. We also want to share some interactive maps we created that allow for a close comparison of the new and old districts using a swipe tool. To activate that, click on the “Swipe” icon. Zoom in for greater detail as necessary.
Nationwide upper chamber district changes
Nationwide lower chamber district changes
Redistricting litigation in the 2020s
States are constitutionally required to redraw their state legislative boundaries following the release of every decennial census in order to account for changes in population. Generally, redistricting plans are considered more fair and more aligned with voters’ interests when they adhere to established guidelines for contiguity, compactness, and the preservation of communities of interest. Although it may sound straightforward, redistricting in the United States is anything but.
The 2020 redistricting cycle was rife with litigation that, if the 2010 cycle is any indication, will continue well into the decade. Nearly half of the 50 states (20 to be exact) have had one or more of their state legislative maps challenged in court. These challenges were generally based on claims of intentional gerrymandering, racial discrimination, and specific violations of the Voting Rights Act.
A few states fared especially poorly during this redistricting cycle. Due to litigation, Alaska, Ohio, New York, and South Carolina will need to redraw district boundaries in one or both legislative chambers prior to the 2024 election cycle. Pending the outcome of litigation, other states may also need to redraw chambers. The State Senate and State House tabs of our redistricting tracker will keep you updated.
As we look back on this redistricting season, we want to highlight a few specific cases that caught our attention:
A bungle in the Buckeye State
In 2015, Ohio voters passed a constitutional amendment to create a bipartisan commission (albeit one that still comprises political actors) to draw state legislative districts. Some hoped this would result in fairer, more efficiently drawn maps. If only. The first maps passed by the Republican-led commission in 2021 lacked approval from minority-party members and later were deemed unconstitutional by the Ohio Supreme Court. The commission missed the deadline for the second set of maps, but in any case they were again ruled an unconstitutional partisan gerrymander. The third time was not the charm. Consultants hired to produce the next set of maps also missed the deadline, so the commission submitted its own maps. That set and the next were rejected by the court. Later, a federal court ruled that the first set of (unconstitutional) maps should be used in the 2022 election. The maps will need to be redrawn again before the next election.
A controversy in the Cowboy State
Legislators in Wyoming wrangled over the decision of whether or not to add three seats to its legislature. Those in favor argued that if more districts were not added, then certain communities of interest would be split and legislators would have to spend more time traveling to meet constituents. Those in opposition claimed adding new seats wasn’t worth the taxpayer expense. The seats were ultimately added but, ironically, the legislature made major last-minute changes that still resulted in districts with un-lawful levels of population deviation, thereby making the maps vulnerable to legal challenges that taxpayers would have to pay to defend. Barring a late surprise from its neighbor Montana, it seems Wyoming will be the only state to alter the size of its legislature this redistricting cycle.
All newly-redrawn state legislative and Congressional districts are live in Cicero. So if you still need to match addresses to new districts, head on over to District Match or use the API. In either case, reference our blog on how to match addresses to new districts.
We are also hard at work adding newly-redrawn districts for all cities and counties included in our data coverage. Stay tuned for updates.
Thanks to Daniel McGlone and TJ Hare for their contributions to this blog.
