Georgia is among the Republican-led states moving to redraw its congressional and state legislative districts this year. This follows the U.S. Supreme Court decision this year that struck down Louisiana’s majority Black congressional districts as unconstitutional racial gerrymandering.
Gerrymandering is a standard practice in American politics by both Democrats and Republicans, as is litigation for processes called packing and stacking, or the attempts to minimize representation for opposing party voters. With the latest Supreme Court ruling, states believe they have more room to maximize representation by party affiliation, instead of preserving or defending representation by race or ethnicity.
On June 17 Georgia’s Republican Gov. Brian Kemp and the Republican leaders of the state House of Representatives and Senate now decide whether to take advantage of the new legal ruling to change voting districts that amplify their party’s advantages.
During this special session taking place at the state capitol in Atlanta, lawmakers must keep the same number of seats for the state House, the state Senate and Georgia’s 14 U.S. Congressional districts. By law, each of these districts for each body must have equal population numbers.
The decisions will affect elections starting in 2028.
Here are some common methods through which elected representatives can draw electoral boundaries – and how decisions can advantage the majority or a minority party:
