On CA redistricting. What do you think of this NY Times article?

[rumpel]

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/02/19/opinion/19hill.html?th

Schwarzenegger vs. Gerrymander

Steven Hill, a fellow at the New America Foundation, is the author of "Fixing Elections: The Failure of America's Winner-Take-All Politics."


snip
Governor Schwarzenegger and others are proposing that redistricting be taken out of the hands of the incumbents and given to an independent body, like a panel of impartial retired judges. Yet several states already use independent commissions, and the results are not encouraging.

snip

Not that there aren't plenty of Democrats living in mostly Republican areas (and vice versa) - as well as independents and third-party supporters all over. It's just that they are "orphaned voters" whose candidates almost never win. But it's not because of redistricting. It's because regional partisan demographics are exaggerated by the method by which California elects its representatives - the single-seat-district, winner-take-all electoral system.

It may well be that California's electoral system, like the rest of America's, has reached its endgame. Our current politics are as good as they are going to be as long as we continue to use an antiquated method that is so ill suited for the new California and its wide range of attitudes, demographics and geographic regions.

We can't change where people choose to live, but we can begin using some type of proportional representation system. For example, California could use a system like that in Peoria, Ill., for municipal elections. Instead of electing 40 state senators from 40 districts, voters in 10 districts could elect four senators each. Any candidate who won at least a quarter of the vote would earn a seat. These districts would be far more likely to be bipartisan, even electing some urban Republicans and rural Democrats.

[msongs]

1. CA repubs are not keen on the idea, and as for the voters...........

CA republicans all come from safe seats, so they would face election fights as well.............so arnold is not getting lock step fascist support on this issue.

having a panel takes the issue out of the hands of voters, who are supposed to control this kinda thing..........denies us the right to vote out people we do not want.

the obvious misuse of districting is where one has a district that is 100 yards wide and 100 miles long for the purpose of mainting a party strangle hold like they do in...........republican run texas :-)

Msongs
www.msongs.com/political-shirts.htm

BTW if arnold the austrian bully does not get a redistricting law through the legislature (which he will not) he is using the millions in special interest $$ from outside CA to get an initiative on the ballot.

[Helga Scow Stern]

2. Another reason not to support any redistricting designs by der Grope.

[rumpel]

3. but what could be a fair districting plan? I am really torn on this one.

[Wilms]

4. Try posting on the CA board.

There's an occasional discussion over there.