SLAY THE DRAGON follows everyday people, outraged by what they see as an attack on the core democratic principle that every person’s vote should count equally. This election year, we’re joining together with grassroots partners to put an end to gerrymandering. Because this issue impacts each state differently, we’ve created a map to help you navigate how gerrymandering affects your state and community. SLAY THE DRAGON arrives on demand April 3.
Click on your state in the map above to find out what’s going on and how you can help.
We are partnering with organizations in Michigan, Colorado, Wisconsin to support the creation of non-partisan redistricting commissions to protect votes across the country.
Click on your state in the map above to find out what’s going on and how you can help.
We are partnering with organizations in Michigan, Colorado, Wisconsin to support the creation of non-partisan redistricting commissions to protect votes across the country.
SLAY THE DRAGON follows everyday people, outraged by what they see as an attack on the core democratic principle that every person’s vote should count equally. This election year, we’re joining together with grassroots partners to put an end to gerrymandering. Because this issue impacts each state differently, we’ve created a map to help you navigate how gerrymandering affects your state and community. SLAY THE DRAGON arrives on demand April 3.
Click on your state in the map above to find out what’s going on and how you can help.
We are partnering with organizations in Michigan, Colorado, Wisconsin to support the creation of non-partisan redistricting commissions to protect votes across the country.
Click on your state in the map above to find out what’s going on and how you can help.
We are partnering with organizations in Michigan, Colorado, Wisconsin to support the creation of non-partisan redistricting commissions to protect votes across the country.
What’s going on in Maine
Process
State Legislature
The primary responsibility for state legislative and congressional redistricting rests with the Maine Legislature, which must adopt a plan by a two-thirds vote in both chambers, subject to gubernatorial veto.
Advisory Commission
Per Maine’s state constitution (Art. IV 3rd § 1-A), the process must be guided by a 15-member advisory commission, which is comprised of politicians and members of the public, divided equally between the two major parties, and chaired by an independent. The commission recommends state legislative and congressional plans to the Legislature, which can accept, modify, or reject the proposals.
Criteria
In addition to the federal requirements of one person, one vote and the Voting Rights Act, Maine’s state constitution requires that state legislative (Art. IV 1st § 2) and congressional (Art. IX § 24) districts be compact, contiguous, and preserve political subdivisions.
Public Input
The advisory commission is constitutionally required to hold public hearings on any plans before submitting to the Legislature. There was at least one public hearing held in August 2011 to gather public input.
Issues
Timeline
In the last redistricting cycle, Maine would have drawn new congressional districts in 2013, after the 2012 elections, per existing state law. However, a federal lawsuit challenging the unequal population of districts led the court to order the Legislature to draw maps before the elections. In 2013, a bill was passed to permanently set the deadline for redistricting in the first year of the decade (e.g. 2021).
Census Delays
- Advisory commission delivery deadline: June 1, 2021 (Art. IV 1st § 3)
- Legislative approval deadline: June 11, 2021 (Art. IV 2nd § 2)
- Supreme Court of Maine fallback deadline: August 10, 2021 (Art. IV 2nd § 2)
The Census Bureau may delay sending population data to states until as late as July 31, 2021. In the case of delay, Maine likely will not be able to meet any of the three deadlines. As these dates are outlined in the state constitution, formal action will need to be taken to adjust the redistricting schedule. One possible solution is an amendment to Article X of the state constitution to create a one-time provision pushing redistricting deadlines back to September 2021.
History
In the 2011 redistricting cycle, an independent voter brought a federal challenge (Turcotte v. LaPage) arguing that the two major political parties had too much control over the redistricting process and were disproportionately represented in the advisory commission, diluting the voice of unaffiliated voters. The case was dismissed.
Actions
Defend the advisory system while advocating for further reforms:
- Write to your local news organization in support of the advisory commission.
- Contact your state legislators to voice your desire for fair redistricting.
- Read the Common Cause Activist Handbook on Redistricting Reform to learn about what reforms have been successful in the past, and what steps to take to enact reform in the future.
In 2020, support state legislative candidates who favor fair districting.
In 2021, participate in the Legislature’s public input process.
- Obtain Maine redistricting data from OpenPrecincts.
- Start to plan out what defines your community – whether it’s a shared economic interest, school districts, or other social or other cultural, historical, or economic interests – and how that can be represented on a map. This will come in handy once the advisory commission starts collecting feedback.
- Use software tools such as Dave's Redistricting App and Districtr to draw district maps showing either (a) what a fair map would look like, or (b) where the community you believe should be better represented is located.
Contacts
Data provided by the Princeton Gerrymandering Project