What Is Gerrymandering and Why Is It Important? - December 20, 2018

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1. 0:01Gerrymander is an old word for an idea that is still important today in the United States.
2. 0:11The term was first used in 1812 by an artist who made pictures for a newspaper.
3. 0:19The artist wanted to call attention to a strangely shaped voting area in the state of Massachusetts.
4. 0:27The area looked like an animal—a salamander, to be exact.
5. 0:35It had a strange shape because Massachusetts officials made it that way to help the political party
6. 0:43of this state's governor,
7. 0:45Eldbridge Gary. So the newspaper called the area a gerrymander.
8. 0:52Over time, many people exchanged the hard G for a soft G.
9. 1:01Today, creating a voting area for the purpose
10. 1:05of helping a political party is commonly called gerrymandering.
11. 1:12The issue remains in the news because politicians have a chance
12. 1:19to recreate voting districts every 10 years, after the nation's population is counted.
13. 1:27In most states, officials from the majority party change the boundaries
14. 1:34of voting districts after the count is completed.
15. 1:39Each area must have about the same number of people,
16. 1:44but officials can group similar voters together,
17. 1:49Or they can split up groups of like-minded voters to limit their power.
18. 1:57Critics of gerrymandering argue that the way a voting district is mapped strongly influences
19. 2:04which party wins a race, especially races for the U.S.
20. 2:10Congress. They say, the custom is not democratic.
21. 2:16It puts the interests of political parties over those of voters.
22. 2:22Some politicians defend the practice, especially when they are in the majority.
23. 2:29They say, gerrymandering is legal, part of the political process, or not really an important issue.
24. 2:38They also say the Constitution gives the power to create voting areas
25. 2:46to state lawmakers.
26. 2:50Once again, critics object.
27. 2:52They say the courts, including the Supreme Court, could and should step in.
28. 3:02I'm Kellie Jean Kelly.