Which party controls congressional redistricting in your state

The once-a-decade redrawing of U.S. congressional and state legislative boundaries is underway across the country. The process, known as redistricting, will alter the country’s political landscape, as parties and interest groups jockey to shape districts in ways that could cement their advantage for the next 10 years.

The stakes are sky high. Republicans need to flip only five congressional seats to win back the House majority in 2022, and Democrats fear the GOP’s advantage in state legislatures could help tip the balance.

What changed since the last redistricting cycle?

The coronavirus pandemic, coupled with the Trump administration’s losing battle to exclude undocumented immigrants from the census enumeration, delayed the release of 2020 Census redistricting data by about four months.

As in the 2010 cycle, Republicans enjoy an advantage over the process: In the 37 states where elected officials could ultimately decide the borders of congressional maps, 20 are fully in Republican control, eight are held by Democrats, and nine are split. Still, the gap between the parties’ power has closed slightly since the last cycle.

In seven states, power to draw new congressional districts falls to so-called independent commissions. Unlike other commissions, which either include elected politicians or which can make recommendations but can be overridden by legislatures, independent commissions are designed to be nonpartisan and are empowered to submit final redistricting proposals.

The independent commissions’ work could provide evidence for advocates who would like to see more states adopt them — or to opponents who say they can be gamed to serve political ends.

In the redistricting cycle following the 2010 Census, legislative deadlocks and legal challenges resulted in many districts eventually being determined by courts. This cycle, both parties are gearing up for another round of intense litigation.

Meanwhile, two landmark Supreme Court decisions of the past decade have given states more control over the shape of districts.

First, in 2013, the Supreme Court rendered unenforceable the Voting Rights Act’s requirement that certain states with a history of racial discrimination obtain clearance from the Justice Department before enacting new maps. Then, in 2019, the Court ruled that federal judges do not have the power to stop partisan gerrymandering, with politicians drawing districts to preserve or expand their party’s power.

What constraints do map-drawers have to consider?

Although states enjoy wider latitude when drawing electoral districts, they remain constrained by the U.S. Constitution and the Voting Rights Act. As a result, mapmakers must ensure each electoral district includes about the same number of people, and they must not draw districts that discriminate against voters on the basis of race or ethnicity.

[How the racial makeup of where you live has changed since 1990]

By amending state constitutions or passing laws, many states have imposed further requirements on their mapmakers. In some states, state courts have established precedents that could affect how maps are drawn.

How quickly do states have to settle on a map?

As a result of the census delays, mapmakers across the country will be pressed for time as they race to draw new congressional and state legislative boundaries.

Each state imposes different deadlines upon its mapmaking process — and many states are adjusting those deadlines to accommodate the delayed census release — but every state will need to have its district boundaries ready in time for congressional candidates to file for next year’s primaries. Filing deadlines vary from state to state — Texas’s Dec. 13 filing deadline is the earliest, while Rhode Island’s is not until June 29, 2022.