If we the people want to regain control of the federal House, then we need to regain control of the Representatives. Because the
average congressional district in the U.S. consists of
700,000 people, the Representatives must raise many millions of dollars every two years in order to finance their reelection campaign. Of course, it is far easier for an
incumbent to raise those amounts than it is for a
challenger. Because of this barrier to entry, incumbent Representatives are assured of 90%+ reelection rates.
As a result, the incumbent is beholden to numerous powerful special interests for their financial and political support; these groups comprise the Representatives'
primary constituents. The citizenry has become the Representatives'
secondary constituency.
If we reduced the population size of congressional districts from 700,000 to a much smaller size, such as
50,000, it is easy to see why the citizens would once again become the Representatives'
primary constituents. It would no longer require millions of dollars to seek election in a district of 50,000. In fact, if an incumbent were not held in high esteem by his/her constituents, then any competent citizen could mount an effective challenge at no more expense than the cost of several pairs of walking shoes and several thousand photocopies.
This point is argued for in the Thirty-Thousand.org web pamphlet. If you are interested in this, please read the 15
Questions and Answers on the homepage (at
http://www.thirty-thousand.org).