Gerrymandering is when politicians manipulate voting district boundaries to favor one party over another. In most states, state legislators and the governor control the once-a-decade line-drawing process. So what happens when one party controls the state House, the state Senate and the governor’s mansion? The party usually does everything in its power to draw the lines in a way that favors them and puts their political opponents at a disadvantage.
That’s called partison gerrymandering, and it’s how you end up with oddly shaped congressional districts.
Like in Pennsylvania …
Or Maryland …
Or Texas.
And gerrymandering isn’t something new that’s popped up in this hyperpartisan environment. American politicians have been gerrymandering districts for more than 200 years.
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