Representative Brian Newberry , a Republican commission member who represents North Smithfield and part of Burrillville , says the “ commission is mostly for information gathering and for show . It does not draw the districts ; the districts are ultimately drawn by the consultant and whoever the leadership appoints to be the point person . You can ’ t remove politics from political redistricting . It will always be political .”
The word “ gerrymander ” was coined in 1812 at a Boston dinner party and given form in a Boston Gazette illustration , to describe the salamander-shaped district created by Massachusetts Governor Elbridge Gerry , who packed the Federalists in one political subdivision to benefit his party , the Democratic-Republicans .
By one measure , Rhode Island is considered one of the most gerrymandered states in the nation . The efficiency gap , a metric created by Harvard law professor Nicholas Stephanopoulos and Eric McGhee of the Public Policy Institute of California , applies a simple mathematical formula to the number of “ wasted ” votes by either party in a particular district map . A district packed with one party ’ s voters will result in consistent , overwhelming electoral victories . The winning party “ wastes ” the excess votes beyond what is needed to win . In a district that ’ s been cracked , the margins are not so lopsided , but the mappers have moved just enough of one party ’ s voters out of a district to ensure consistent losses . The losing party “ wastes ” its votes because it never had a shot to begin with . Rhode Island ’ s efficiency gap in state house elections , as the pair calculated in 2012 , showed a robust and durable gerrymander favoring Democrats .
In some ways , gerrymandering has never been easier . Over the last fifty years , the two major parties have ideologically sorted themselves into liberal and conservative parties , and voters cast fewer split votes and switch parties less frequently . Computer technology and granular data make the path to packing or cracking a district clear .
Democratic leaders have promised that this time would be different .
“ I can say that the process that we use is very transparent ,” says Democratic Party Chairman Joe McNamara . “ I don ’ t think it ’ s going to be a difficult lift this time around . The [ House ] Speaker [ Joseph Shekarchi ] and the Senate President [ Dominick Ruggerio ] have stated that transparency and public participation will be priorities in the process .”
This was met by a healthy dose of skepticism .
“ There ’ s quite a lot of people who are at risk , including Republicans , conservatives , even people often thought as leadership loyal ,” says Senator Sam Bell , a Providence legislator who ’ s part of the progressive caucus . “ But the progressives who have mounted the strongest challenges to leadership are far and away the most vulnerable to redistricting . The senate president told us he ’ s not going to retaliate . I very much hope that will be the case . But I ’ m not sure I trust them .”
Certainly , good government groups and those invested in preventing minority disenfranchisement vowed to parse every new line .
“ The Latino population grew by 40 percent in the last ten years ,” says Dr . Pablo Rodriguez , a long-time political activist . “ The Latinos in the urban core are now moving out into the suburbs . The borders of Providence , Woonsocket , Pawtucket and Central Falls are all changing and that could translate into more Latino representation .”
The ACLU ’ s Brown is focused on transparency .
“ This time , the public will be able to work with redistricting software and offer specific recommendations ,” he says . “ But , it ’ s just as important for the commission to let the public know how they are making their decisions . I don ’ t want to pre-judge , but I ’ m hoping they will take community input seriously .”
Harvard ’ s Stephanopoulos says the United States is currently in the midst of a “ totally unprecedented movement ” aimed at taking the reins from legislators . The models for independent redistricting commissions range from Iowa , which uses a bureaucratic office , to California , which selects districting commissioners via lottery .
“ You ’ ll never get politics out of redistricting if politicians , who are most affected by the process , remain in charge of the process . But if you have a non-partisan , independent body doing the line drawing , you can absolutely reduce , if not
30 RHODE ISLAND MONTHLY l NOVEMBER 2021