Republicans to redistrict, Democrats scramble for reasons to keep hope

Political parties covet the redistricting process so they can draw lines to give their respective parties an advantage, especially incumbents. The outcomes of this past election are significant in that Republicans now control more seats in the U.S.’s state legislatures than they have since the Great Depression and they now have control over the redistricting process.  However, in the state of Illinois, the state legislature and the governor are both controlled by the Democratic party. A review of the Voting Rights Act by the Department of Justice may be the only hope for the rest of the nation’s Democrats.

The Republicans of Illinois are worried that they will be pushed even further into a minority status with the redistricting. The new boundaries will put forth candidates for every seat in the Illinois House and Senate as well as every congressional district in 2010.  While these circumstances favor Illinois’ Democrats, the majority of the country’s boundaries will be redrawn by Republicans; roughly 190 according to this article.

The Republican party seems to have a great advantage of this redistricting process but some Democrats remain opmtomistic. For the first time in nearly 50 years, the Democrats have the advantage in the Justice Department to review the Voting Rights Act. Will Department of Justice help Democrats and review the previously upheld maps of G.W. Bush’s DOJ? Or will Republicans backfire and argue that such use of the review process on behalf of the Democratic party is unfair?

The true effects of this year’s redistricting will not be exposed for another 23 months but will last an entire decade. Whether or not the DOJ will rehear relevant cases of the past is hard to tell. While the power to review rulings is fundamental to the country’s democratic growth and evolution, the Justices are not supposed to hear cases that are politically motivated. Not to mention the provisions of the Voting Rights Act that are at stake are issues of great controversy; immigration. While the Obama Administration  and the Democratic party have bigger fish to fry, those fish will not even make it into the frying pan if Democrats sit back and watch Republicans gerrymander.

So any Democratic politician with half a brain will recognize the need to make all efforts possible to block or at least limit the gerrymandering. Better start sending in amicus briefs.

Check out this link to see the top 10 most gerrymandered districts in the U.S.