Redistricting 2011

Redistricting Calendar.  Redistricting Competition.  News and Articles.  2010 Census Data.  Governor's Commission.  Redistricting Info.  League Testimony.  League Position.  What You Can Do.

Redistricting Calendar

Go to the Virginia Public Access Project Calendar.

Virginia College & University Redistricting Competition

The Wason Center for Public Policy at Christopher Newport University and the Public Mapping Project sponsored the Virginia College and University Legislative Redistricting Competition to help educate students and the public about the process of redistricting. Winners were announced on March 22. For details see:

• Competition Winners
• All Student Submissions
• Virginia Redistricting Competition Website
• Winners are Alternative to Gerrymandering: See the Full Press Release
• Members of the non-partisan Virginia Redistricting Coalition called on the General Assembly and Gov. Bob McDonnell to seriously consider the House, Senate and Congressional district boundaries proposed by the student winners Redistricting Competition. Read Full Press Release.

Articles About the Competition:

• Va. students tasked with crafting 'fair' voting districts, Bill Sizemore, The Virginian-Pilot, March 13, 2011.

• 68 ALTERNATIVES TO GERRYMANDERING: Judging begins in Virginia College Redistricting Competition and 68 alternative maps viewable online for General Assembly and Congressional districts at: https://districtbuilder.varedistrictingcompetition.org, March 11, 2011.

• No Gerrymandering Allowed - Virginia Redistricting Competition Begins, Virginia Press Assocication, February 16, 2011.

• Thomas Mann of the Brookings Institution and Norman Ornstein of the American Enterprise Institute will serve as judges for the 2011 Virginia College and University Legislative Redistricting Competition, , Virginia Press Assocication, February 16, 2011.

• Professors at Christopher Newport University (CNU) and George Mason University (Mason) announce the 2011 Virginia College and University Legislative Redistricting Competition, Contact Lori Jacobs, Communications & Public Relations at lori.jacobs@cnu.edu.

Redistricting in the News

• Va. Beach would lose state senator under Dem plan, The Virginian-Pilot © March 29, 2011

• Prepare to Gerrymander: General Assembly's redistricting committees approved rules that contradict the criteria set by Gov. Bob McDonnell. Press release by the Virginia Redistricting Coalition, 3/28/11

• McDonnell's redistricting commission: We will be relevant - Washington Post - 3/17/11

• Coalition Attacks Redistricting Proposal - Times Dispatch, 3/17/11

• Governor's Advisory Panel on Redistricting Visits Northern Virginia - Washington Post, 3/16/11

• Bipartisan Panel Touts Apolitical Lines While Legislators Behind Closed Doors Redraw Districts - Associated Press, 3/16/11

• VA Delegation Goes into Incumbent Protection Mode - The Examiner, 3/16/11

• Politico.com: House Delegation Protects Itself - Politco, 3/15/11

• Redistricting Coalition members challenge incumbent-protection gerrymander: Politico reported that Virginia's delegation in the House of Representatives has agreed on a redistricting plan that would shuffle Democratic and Republican voters into new congressional district boundaries tailored to protect all 11 incumbents. Read the Full Article, Virginia Redistricting Coalition, March 15, 2011.

• Bipartisan commission drawing up redistricting proposals The panel is looking at "communities of interest" as it draws up plans, Michael Sluss, Roanoke Times, March 13, 2011.

• Independence: Opponents of collective bargaining for public employees make a strong, albeit unintended, case for redistricting reform. Critics say collective bargaining permits unions to play crucial roles in the election of officials who will determine labor contracts, Richmond Times Dispatch Editorial, March 11, 2011.

• Virginia Redistricting Coalition called on Saslaw and the General Assembly to put aside "cynical politics as usual" and give serious consideration to the non-partisan district maps that will be presented by the Independent Bipartisan Commission on Redistricting and by the Virginia College and University Redistricting Competition. Read the Full Article.

• The Promise and Perils of Computers in Redistricting by Micah Altman, Senior Research Scientist, Institute for Quantitative Social Science, Harvard University and Michael McDonald, Associate Professor, Department of Public and International Affairs, George Mason University.

• Virginia Redistricting Coalition Applauds Governor's Action on Bipartisan Redistricting, January 12, 2011

• Mr. McDonnell's Toothless Commission, Washington Post Editorial, January 10,2011

• Governor McDonnell Establishes Independent Bipartisan Redistricting Commission Press Release January 10, 2011

• Held on January 7th, this forum educated the public on the redistricting process and informed citizens of timelines and accessibilities of data, hearings, committees, to promote transparency and bipartisan redistricting. See a local news report on this forum Centreville News. See Event Flyer and a Press Release. Event was hosted by: Voice of Vietnamese Americans (VVA), Coalition of Asian Pacific Americans in Virginia (CAPAVA), League of Woman Voters of Virginia (LWV-VA), Virginia Coalition of Latino American Organizations (VACOLAO).

• Census Wisely Explains Reapportionment by Ed O'Keefe, Washington Post.

• The Fix's Mapping the Future, a recurring series of reports about redistricting by Chris Cillizza, Washington Post.

• Virginia Senators and Delegates Held Joint Redistricting Hearing, by Rosalind S. Helderman, The Washington Post Weblog, 12-8-2010.

• The Scourge Of Elbridge Gerry by Christina Nuckols, The Virginian Pilot Column, 11/7/2010

• And Now, Redistricting Time Editorial by the Sun Gazette Newspaper in Northern Virginia, 11/3/2010

• Time for redistricting reform Editorial by the Washington Post, 10/31/2010

• Response to the Roanoke Times Editorial 'Promised to Keep' by LWV-VA President, Olga Hernandez, 9/2/2010

2010 Census Data

The first data released from the 2010 Census are the official national and state population counts that are used to apportion seats in the U.S. House of Representatives. As mandated by the Constitution, these data must be delivered to the President on or before December 31.

Follow the release of these data on the U.S. Census Bureau Website.

Virginia Public Access Project (VPAP) maps show which legislative districts must add or shed population:

• Virginia House of Delegates Districts
• Virginia State Senate Districts
• U.S. Congressional Districts
• Cities and Counties Map

Governor's Independent Bipartisan Commission

• See the Commission Website

• Governor McDonnell Establishes Independent Bipartisan Redistricting Commission Press Release January 10, 2011

• Executive Order Thirty-One (2010) Establishing the Commission

• Mission, Composition and Logistics of Commission Members

Commission Members:

• Chairman: Bob Holsworth, Managing Partner of DecideSmart
• Gary Baise, Principal, Olsson Frank Weeda
• The Honorable Viola Baskerville, Former Member, Virginia House of Delegates
• The Honorable Barry DuVal, President, Virginia Chamber of Commerce
• The Honorable Jim Dyke, Partner, McGuireWoods
• Jean Jensen, Former Secretary, State Board of Elections
• The Honorable Sam Johnston, Former Judge, 24th Judicial Circuit
• The Honorable Walt Kelley, Former Judge, U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Virginia
• Sean O'Brien, Executive Director, Center for the Constitution at James Madison's Montpelier
• Cameron Quinn, Former Secretary, State Board of Elections
• Ashley Taylor, Partner, Troutman Sanders

Commission Advisors:

• Judy Ford Wason, Christopher Newport University
• Dr. Quentin Kidd, Christopher Newport University
• Dr. Charles Dunn, Regent University

Information About Redistricting

• Division of Legislative Services: Provides estimates of the current populations of the present House, Senate, and congressional districts and numerous extensive presentations about the process.

• The Virginia Public Access Project's Redistricting Portal

• LWV-VA Reapportionment and Redistricting: The League of Women Voters of Virginia's comprehensive study of the topic.

• Public Mapping Project: This site seeks to change this power balance by making it possible for the public to draw the boundaries of their communities and to generate redistricting plans for their state and localities - through their web-browsers.

• LWV-VA Redistricting Talking Points.

• 2011 Virginia College and University Competition Professors at Christopher Newport University (CNU) and George Mason University (Mason) announce the Legislative Redistricting Competition. Read the Full Press Release.

Websites of Interest:

• http://lwv-va.org/redistricting2011.html
• http://lwv-va.org/redistrict.html
• http://redistricting.dls.virginia.gov
• http://2010.census.gov/2010census/data/
• http://2010.census.gov/2010census/data/redistricting-data.php
• http://2010.census.gov/2010census/data/apportionment-data-text.php
• http://www.varedistrictingcompetition.org/
• http://www.redistrictinggame.org
• http://www.publicmapping.org/Home
• http://www.vpap.org/updates/redistricting
• http://www.gerrymanderingmovie.com/
• http://www.varedistrictingcompetition.org/
• http://fixthelines.org/

Reports of Interest:

• http://lwv-va.org/files/redistricting_study_part_1.pdf
• http://lwv-va.org/files/rd_study_part_ii.pdf
• http://dlsgis.state.va.us/Ref/2011Draw1.pdf
• http://www.brennancenter.org/content/resource/a_citizens_guide_to_redistricting_2010_edition/
• http://rosereport.org/20110202/virginia-redistricting-protecting-incumbents-again-the-complete-series/
• http://funderscommittee.org/files/Collaborative_RedistrictingGuide_2.pdf
• http://www.redistrictinginstitute.org
• http://www.cga.ct.gov/2008/rpt/2008-R-0588.htm/
• http://www.law.duke.edu/journals/djclpp/?action=downloadarticle&id=167

League Testimony

Read the comments made by League members around the state representing the League at the various hearings:

The Independent Bipartisan Advisory Commission on Redistricting held four public forums around the state in March as part of its goal to ensure bipartisan citizen involvement in the General Assembly and Congressional redistricting process.

• Carol Noggle on March 11, Richmond, The Capitol.
• Molly McClenon on March 14, Roanoke, Virginia Western Community College.
• Therese Martin on March 15, Northern Virginia, George Mason University
• March 21, Hampton Roads, Norfolk State University

At the first public hearings held in Fall 2010:

• LWV-VA VP, Lynn Gordon at the Tidewater Community College in Portsmouth.
• LWV-VA President, Olga Hernandez at Mary Washington University, Stafford Campus.
• LWV-VA President, Olga Hernandez at GMU in Fairfax.
• LWV-VA VP, Lynn Gordon at Tidewater Community College.
• Communications Director, Karen Cronin at VA Western Community College, Roanoke.
• LWV-VA Board Member Molly McClenon at the Virginia Western Community College Natural Science Center, Roanoke.
• LWV-VA President, Olga Hernandez at the Herndon Town Council Chambers in Herndon.

League Position

LWV-VA REAPPORTIONMENT & REDISTRICTING POSITION

Position in Brief:

Support for a decennial redistricting plan approved by the General Assembly, including establishment of a bipartisan commission to prepare a plan for legislative approval, and consideration of natural geographic boundaries, jurisdictional boundaries, communities of interest, and competitiveness in addition to the constitutional requirements.

The League's Position:

The League of Women Voters of Virginia supports the establishment of a Reapportionment Commission for each decennial redistricting to prepare, with the Virginia Department of Legislative Services, a plan for submission to the legislature as specified by the Virginia Constitution. The Commission should be bi-partisan and be composed of individuals who are not elected officials; they should represent the geographical distribution and demographic diversity of the state, and consist of an uneven number of members.

In addition to the Virginia constitutional requirement of equal population, contiguous and compact districts and the Voting Rights Act requirements for protecting the voting strength of minority groups, the League supports the following considerations in redistricting:

• Natural geographic boundaries;
• Jurisdictional boundaries;
• Communities of interest; and
• Competitiveness

The Virginia constitution should be amended to provide that redistricting will occur on a decennial basis only. (2007)

For more information about how our positions are developed and our current studies in progress, visit the Action and Advocacy section of our website.

What You Can Do

• Get Informed!
• Speak at a Public Hearing
• Read the Virginia Redistricting Coalition Talking Points.
• Read the League's Redistricting Talking Points.
• Write a Letter to the Editor

Comments, suggestions, questions? Contact our webmaster. Last revised: May 1, 2012 23:24 PDT.

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