A Critical Step Towards Fair Elections

The Freedom to Vote Act: Ending Partisan Gerrymandering

A Critical Step Towards Fair Elections

The Freedom to Vote Act is a comprehensive voting rights bill that has been passed by the House of Representatives and is awaiting action in the Senate. Among other important provisions, the act includes critical safeguards to end extreme partisan gerrymandering in congressional redistricting.

The Problem of Partisan Gerrymandering

Partisan gerrymandering is the practice of drawing electoral districts to favor one political party over another. This is done by manipulating the boundaries of districts to concentrate supporters of one party into certain districts and spread out supporters of the other party into as many districts as possible. The result is that one party can win a majority of the seats in a legislature even though it receives only a minority of the votes. This is a form of voter suppression that dilutes the power of certain voters' votes.

How the Freedom to Vote Act Would Help

The Freedom to Vote Act would address the problem of partisan gerrymandering in three key ways:

• It would establish a strong ban on partisan gerrymandering, prohibiting states from drawing congressional districts that are not drawn in a way that is fair and impartial
• It would create a new independent redistricting commission to draw congressional districts in states that have a history of partisan gerrymandering.
• It would provide federal courts with the authority to review and strike down congressional district maps that are drawn in a partisan manner.

The Freedom to Vote Act is a critical step towards ensuring fair elections in the United States. By ending partisan gerrymandering, the act would give voters a greater voice in the political process and help to create a more responsive and representative government.