The Anatomy of a Gerrymander

Abstract

The U.S. Supreme Court recently held that Indiana's 1981-82 state legislative redistricting plan was constitutional despite discriminatory intent to gerrymander. The Court found that the plaintiffs failed to demonstrate discriminatory effect because, among other reasons, they relied on the use of aggregate statewide data from a single election. This paper analyzes redistricting in Indiana utilizing precinct-by-precinct election returns and examines shifts in the party composition of districts. Findings indicate that gerrymandering did take place in Indiana and that blocks of voters were systematically shifted to and from districts as part of an overall strategy aimed at benefiting the majority Republican party. Districts controlled by the Republicans were altered little, while Democratic districts were changed significantly by introducing large blocks of voters. In districts where a seat had changed party hands in the past, a large core of Republican voters was carried forward to the new district which was buttressed by an advantageous split of new Republican to Democratic voters.