Reapportionment

The U.S. is a REPRESENTATIVE type of government – Citizens elect people to Congress to vote on issues for them – Constituents are the people represented by the member of Congress – 2 Senators per state (represent the whole state) – Members of the House represent a particular district (area) of the state

Census Membership to the House of Representatives is based on population – 435 seats available – divided among states based on population – Census – a population count; official national census occurs every 10 years and is conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau

Reapportionment EVERY 10 YEARS THE SEATS IN THE HOUSE MUST BE RE- DIVIDED! – reapportionment – the process of reassigning representation based on population – When some states grow faster than others, the slower growing states may lose seats (representation) in the House without actually experiencing a decrease in population

Redistrict – Redistrict – to set up new district lines after reapportionment is complete

Gerrymander Gerrymander – redistrict lines in a state to the political advantage of the State’s dominant party – Packing – putting opponents votes into one district – Cracking – splitting up opponents votes into many districts

The Process Census  Reapportionment  Redistricting  Gerrymandering