Redistricting in Texas, Essay Example

One of the biggest issues in local politics is redistricting. Especially in Texas this is a pressing issue, called politically as gerrymandering. Redistricting in Texas is mainly conducted by the Republican Party, and they have called a lot of drama by attempting to redraw the districts to gain more party favor. While it is not prohibited, it is a major problem, and even considered unethical and discriminatory practice. Standard reasons that districts are usually redistricted is because a surge in popular growth in the area, and the way that either the rural or urban areas are densely populated. In redistricting the primary state legislature is responsible for developing a plan for redistricting, and in most cases approved by the governor. For Texas the prospect of gerrymandering, where the party or individual deliberately manipulated the political boundaries for protecting the incumbent seat, or partisan advantage.

However redistricting isn’t all bad, it is a tool that is used to help struggling school systems that are disproportionate, or when there is a shift in population. While parents are often upset when this process take place, it is supposed to benefit new or existing schools to balance enrollment. It does become a hassle when children have to be moved to other district, in can impact the resale value of the home, but it could also benefit the value of homes in real estate because they are close to the needed schools. This is also used as a political tool to increase the number of Congressional seats, in which Texas has the highest.

In Texas, redistricting is a contentious debate as the populations in different areas are surging with growth from immigration of individuals in Mexico and Central America, as well as in-country immigration. For Texas they have considerably effectively reduced competition of House seats in the local government. Texas has made the national news more than once in undertaking redistricting by controversial means, as in 2003 the House used an out-of-cycle redistricting exception, in which the Republican Party was able to dominate the majority of House seats. All but the 23^rd Congressional district was deemed constitutional by the Supreme Court, where the 23^rd district was deemed as a violation against the 1965 Voting Rights Act, in which it was found to be racially gerrymandering. Texas has had a long battle with ethical, discriminatory, and racial issues in regards to redistricting, as well as other areas.

Looking at the latest 2013 U.S. Supreme Court case of Shelby Country vs. Holder decision in which impacted the way that redistricting works in Texas. As soon as the Supreme Court decided on weakening the protection of the 1965 Voting Rights Acts, Texas didn’t waste a minute to implement the controversial Voter ID, same-day registrations, and early voting laws in which categorically discriminated against Hispanics and African American voters, that largely vote in the Democratic Party. The Voting Rights act was intended to protect minorities from illegal tactics to block African Americans from voting. The disservice that the Supreme Court did the southern states, has prompted several lawsuits, diatribes, and national protest. Texas along with other states the Voting Rights Act protected now have preclearance, without having to demonstrate that a new voting law wouldn’t be discriminatory. This also paves the way for redistricting that circumvents the set rules, and instead makes it easier to draw up districts that help their incumbent seat, while so helping their Republican Party. The decision of Shelby Country vs. Holder (2013) effectively helped Texas unethical redistricting tactics.

Works Cited

Brandeisky, Kara, Chen, Hanqing, Tigas, Mike. “Everything That’s Happened Since Supreme Court Ruled on Voting Rights Act.” Pro Publica. 18 Sep. 2014. Web. 3 Oct. 2014. http://www.propublica.org/article/voting-rights-by-state-map

“Redistricting in Texas.” Ballopedia. 2014. Web. 3 Oct. 2014. http://ballotpedia.org/Redistricting_in_Texas