Take stand against redistricting

To the editor:

The Commercial Review has provided ample coverage of President Donald Trump’s  proposal for Indiana to redistrict its federal congressional districts before the 2026 election. 

That’s as it should be. Every voter has a stake in the outcome. 

The proposal is offensive, a cynical power grab by Trump and the Far Right. Supporters make no pretense about their intentions. The goal is to gain an additional Republican U.S. Representative seat by changing district boundaries in Indiana to dilute Democrat votes. 

After each decennial census, the Indiana state legislature redraws congressional maps, as well as legislative district boundaries. This was done in 2021 in line with the Indiana Constitution. These are opportunities to make the elections as representative and fair as possible. State law currently limits redistricting congressional districts to the legislative session after the census. Thus, to move forward the proposal will require a change in law.  

Republican leaders will have difficulty not appearing hypocritical if they attempt to redistrict now. Indiana’s legislative leaders praised the 2021 boundaries. Senate President Pro Tempore Rodric Bray stated, “I believe these maps reflect feedback from the public and will serve Hoosiers well for the next decade.”

So, what has changed?   

Apparently, lust for all nine of Indiana’s U.S. Representative seats.

Seven isn’t enough? 

If they can be won fair and square, OK. But that’s not the plan. Instead, they want to redraw the district lines to favor winning an additional one or two congressional seats. It will require fancy gerrymandering, but today’s technology makes it easier.

It’s obvious from polling that the special redistricting proposal isn’t popular with Hoosier voters. They smell a rat. That may not matter, as the Republican supermajorities in the Indiana House and Senate allow them to do whatever they want. 

Who would lose and who would gain from the redistricting?

That’s easy.

Voters lose, whether they are Democrat, Republican, Libertarian or independent. Entrenched politicians, the political party in power, and powerful lobbies gain.  

While gerrymandering is nothing new, it is a disgusting political trick. To gerrymander is defined as “manipulating the boundaries of an electoral constituency so as to favor one party or class.” The term dates to 1812, combining the name of Massachusetts Gov. Elbridge Gerry and a salamander. Critics thought the new voting district looked like that maligned amphibian and unfairly favored Gerry’s party. The term stuck and politicians have been gerrymandering ever since. 

Gerrymandering hurts every voter by reducing the weight of that individual’s vote. It goes beyond giving one party an automatic advantage. That’s bad enough. But it also leads to “safe” seats for elected officials when a reasonably fair map would make the contests more competitive. A candidate once elected due to gerrymandering can easily decide to ignore constituent needs believing that his or her seat is “safe.”  

It should come as no surprise that redistricting in Texas is already inspiring California Democrats to do the same thing. The question is, ‘Where does it end?” This isn’t democracy in action. Ultimately, all this special redistricting will lead to less voter trust in our elections.  

Indiana’s Republican politicians should be wary. Redistricting of congressional districts for the sole purpose of favoring Republicans could offend not only Democrats, but independents and even moderate Republicans. 

Fortunately, there are several Republican legislators who have said they are against special redistricting, including local State Rep. J.D. Prescott. (For once he and I agree on something.)

More voters around Indiana need to tell their legislators to oppose this insult to representative democracy. 

Eric R. Rogers

Portland