18th
Virginia’s 3rd congressional district looks like a 17th century map of English settlements along the James River. How gerrymandering politicians a decade ago could tell a judge with a straight face that Richmond and Hampton Roads (two completely different and geographically quite separate cities) belong in the same district is beyond me.
The 8th district in Northern Virginia is similarly distorted, with an elongated finger to cover Reston. Why would faraway Reston be part of the Arlington/Alexandria district when nearby eastern Fairfax and northern Prince William are not? (It’s because of who Reston tends to vote for, silly!)
Republicans controlled both houses and the governor’s mansion during the last census, when congressional districts were redrawn, and they pulled no punches when it came down to drawing the lines. By quarantining Democratic strongholds into few districts, thus reducing any real competition from opposition voters in the rest of the districts, the GOP managed to protect their majority in the delegation (and not, say, statewide offices, such as the governor).
This November’s election is important because deciding the makeup of the House of Representatives and the governor is deciding who gerrymanders Virginia for the next ten years.
(Click through and look at the congressional districts in your state. Try the Redistricting Game if you want to try your hand at gerrymandering.)
