Gerrymandering is the practice of drawing election district boundaries in a way that gives one political party or group an unfair advantage over its rivals, usually by manipulating who is grouped into which district. It is widely criticized because it can distort representation so that the distribution of seats in a legislature does not match how people actually voted.

What gerrymandering means

  • In politics, gerrymandering refers to redrawing electoral district lines so that the party in power can make it easier for its candidates to win and stay in office.
  • This is done during redistricting, which typically happens after a census when districts must be updated to reflect population changes.

How it works in practice

Two of the most discussed tactics are often called packing and cracking.

  • Packing: Concentrating as many supporters of the opposing party or group as possible into a small number of districts, so they win overwhelmingly there but have less influence everywhere else.
  • Cracking: Splitting a group’s voters across many districts so they are never numerous enough in any one district to elect their preferred candidate.

Why people say it’s a problem

  • Gerrymandering can lead to “wasted” votes, where many ballots do not help elect anyone, creating a measurable gap between the parties’ overall vote share and the seats they win.
  • Critics argue it undermines democratic principles like fair representation, compact and roughly equal-sized districts, and voters choosing politicians rather than politicians choosing their voters.

Different types of gerrymandering

  • Partisan gerrymandering: Districts are drawn to advantage one political party over another, often locking in control of a legislature even if that party wins only a slim majority (or even a minority) of votes.
  • Racial gerrymandering: Lines are drawn in ways that dilute the voting power of racial or ethnic minority groups, something U.S. law and court decisions have repeatedly scrutinized and restricted.

Where the term comes from

  • The word “gerrymander” comes from Elbridge Gerry, a Massachusetts governor in 1812 whose allies approved a strangely shaped district that helped his party, compared in a famous cartoon to a salamander.
  • That blend of “Gerry” and “salamander” became the term now used worldwide for this kind of electoral map manipulation.

Bottom note: Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.