O Holy Night

The Constitution dictates every 10 years we undergo a Census to count how many people live in each state.&nbsp; Based off these population numbers, congressional seats are then apportioned.&nbsp; States who lost population might lose a seat and states who grew may gain a seat or two since we can only have 435 total seats in the U.S. House.&nbsp; This brings up an obvious question: who gets to redraw congressional districts after apportionment and can they redraw those districts for a political benefit?&nbsp; This is where gerrymandering comes into play.&nbsp; According to our guest expert, “gerrymandering” is drawing districts that are perceived to be unfair in their representation.&nbsp; To further complicate the issue, the Voting Rights Act of 1965 placed restrictions on how these districts are redrawn and subsequent Supreme Court decisions have further altered this process.&nbsp; The current Supreme Court case Alexander v. South Carolina State Conference of the NAACP has the potential to challenge again how districts are redrawn. It’s a complicated issue but we are grateful to have as our guest Mark Braden, an attorney with BakerHostetler who specializes in election law and voting issues to help us navigate this issue.

Ep. 212: What Is Gerrymandering?

Constituting America's Best College Song Winner - Jim Booker 

Jim Booker - Constituting America's Best College Song Winner  - It Don't Matter

Essay 48 – Samuel Rayburn (1882-1961) – by Patrick Cox

Introductory Essay by Dr. David Bobb, Director, Allan P. Kirby, Jr. Center for Constitutional Studies and Citizenship, Hillsdale College

Read by Constituting America Founder & Co-Chair Janine Turner 

February 18, 2013 - Introductory Essay by Dr. David Bobb, Hillsdale's Kirby Center

We are the only organization that utilizes music, the movies and television – kids’ own works – to inspire Americans of all ages to learn about the U.S. Constitution, by distributing their works through the national media. 

Ep. 212: What Is Gerrymandering?

Constituting America

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