U.S. Government and Civics / Unit 6: Congress
6.2 Apportionment and Districts
Notes
House seats are divided among the states by population.
- Census: the Constitution requires a count of the population every 10 years.
- Reapportionment: the 435 seats are redistributed among states after each census. Fast-growing states may gain seats; others may lose them.
- Redistricting: states redraw district lines. In most states the state legislature does this; some use independent commissions.
- Gerrymandering: drawing district lines to benefit a party or group. Packing puts opposing voters in a few districts; cracking splits them among many.
- ***Baker v. Carr* (1962): courts can hear challenges to unequal districts. Wesberry v. Sanders (1964): congressional districts must have roughly equal populations ("one person, one vote**").
- ***Shaw v. Reno* (1993)**: districts drawn mainly based on race face strict scrutiny.
Practice
After a census, a fast-growing state gains two House seats and a slow-growing state loses one. This process is called:
Reapportionment divides the 435 seats among states based on the census.
A legislature draws lines that crowd most of one party's voters into a single district so that party wins fewer seats. This tactic is called:
Packing concentrates the opposing side's voters in a few districts.
The principle "one person, one vote" means that:
Baker v. Carr and Wesberry v. Sanders required districts of roughly equal size.
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