The Justice Department is gearing up for the redistricting process that is currently underway following last year’s census. This Wednesday, the department announced the release of a guidance document that it said was meant “to ensure state, county, and municipal governments comply with Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act concerning redistricting maps and methods of electing governmental bodies.” As the process of redistricting unfolds, the threat of what’s known as gerrymandering looms. “Gerrymandering” entails the manipulation of district lines to provide a political advantage to a certain group — which is exactly what the Justice Department is hoping to tamp down.
Attorney General Merrick Garland commented as follows:
‘The right to vote is the right from which all other rights ultimately flow. Discriminatory redistricting schemes or election practices threaten that fundamental right and are illegal. The guidance issued today makes clear that jurisdictions must abide by federal laws when redrawing their legislative maps and that the Justice Department will vigilantly assess jurisdictions’ compliance with those laws during the redistricting cycle.’
The manipulation of district lines can include lines getting drawn in a way to put the supporters of a particular group in the majority in as many districts as possible. Thus, this group — whether the GOP or any other interest group — ends up in a position to control a portion of the government that does not proportionally reflect its profile within the general population. When such a situation unfolds, the voice of the people can be stifled.
As for the new guidance document from the Justice Department, it “discusses how the department will conduct its review of these redistricting plans and methods of electing governmental bodies to evaluate compliance with Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act,” according to a press release from the department. In the description of that same press release, the document “also describes how the department applies well-established case law while investigating and bringing enforcement actions under Section 2.”
Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division added as follows:
‘Our goal this redistricting season is simple: to ensure that new maps for city councils, school boards, county commissions, state legislatures, Congressional house seats and more do not discriminate on the basis of race, color or membership in a protected language minority group. The Department of Justice is using every tool in our arsenal to protect the right to vote for all Americans and to ensure that officials comply with federal voting laws during the decennial redistricting cycle now underway. This official guidance helps jurisdictions comply with the Voting Rights Act when redrawing electoral maps to ensure that all people have an equal and fair opportunity to elect representatives of their choice.’
The ability of members of the general population to have their voices meaningfully heard within government can affect the course of progress on many issues, and with redistricting for many districts only unfolding after each once-a-decade census, redistricting-related concerns can have far-reaching effects.
