In the United States, apportionment describes the process of distributing seats in the House of Representatives among the 50 states. Each state is given seats according to its population as stated in the constitution. Every state must get at least one seat. Redistricting is a constitutional process that takes place every ten years where American districts of the state legislatures and U.S. House are redrawn. This occurs after the new population is announced by the U.S. Census Bureau. Some states lose some seats, others gain while others remain with the same number depending on the population change.
Sometimes gerrymandering occurs where political districts are drawn in very odd shapes due to political reasons. Gerrymandering can be either partisan, bipartisan or racial. Partisan has been there for a long time since 1789. It only favors one political party and disadvantages the other. Bipartisan benefits the incumbents in Republican and Democratic which are the two political parties in U.S. it became famous during the redistricting process of 2000. It resulted in redistricting plans which were very non-competitive. Racial gerrymandering draws lines to ensure minor races do not elect their preferred candidate. It is used to reduce the impact of minority voting.
Gerrymandering should be stopped. It is a very complex process which uses a lot of money redrawing the boundaries and does not help the nation. Its major focus is political benefits of particular groups and not national development. It also disadvantages some groups, for example, the racial gerrymandering deprives the minorities the rights of choosing their desired candidate.
In 1787, Hamilton assisted in planning for a constitutional convention which took place in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The convention consisted of delegates from the 13 colonies which were the governing group during American Revolution. During the convention, the Articles of Confederation were revised. Most of the delegates who had attended the convention opted to create a new government plan. This led to the creation of the United States Constitution. It established a government which had power over the people. It also stated the powers given to the national government. It protected the rights of the citizens and the powers given to the states. From the colonial and state legislatures, several things were passed to the congress. The first was the mode of governance, it still remained to be in states where each state elects its own leader. The rights of citizens and some powers of the government were also passed. (Wood 368).
Since the legislature created under the new constitution was almost the same as that in the Article of Confederation, it can be said to be a mutant of the old legislature. Based on the state and colonial examples, the Congress should have defined the powers for each state. The constitution should have put same laws for each state to ensure that all the state of America are ruled in the same way since it is one nation.
In the US, most congress seats are taken by the incumbents. The challengers do not mostly run for the seats due to attitudinal and institutional reasons. For one to vie for a seat, they need to be recruited on political ambitions, motivations and psychological dispositions. Their parties are not well organized thus they do not get the necessary support. Not all challengers are the same, some are self-motivated and are ready to go for the seats. It is therefore expected that soon the incumbents will get competition from the challengers.
For one to get money to fund their campaigns, politicians organize for political action committees (PACs). These committees help them to raise some money. Others organize for leadership PACs which also assist them. There are also superpacs where large committees are planned to help raise large amounts of money. Different types of Hill Committees are vital in helping to collect money.
Jeff smith was right in opting for election malpractice to win the elections. It was the only way to become a leader as a challenger since the election rules were made by people already in office and in their favor.
Works Cited
Wood, Gordon S. The Creation of the American Republic, 1776-1787. Chapel Hill: Published for the Institute of Early American History and Culture at Williamsburg, Va., by the University of North Carolina Press, 1969. Print.
