North Dakota Voters First notes status of legislation jamestownsun.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from jamestownsun.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
North Dakota citizens strongly favor government that is transparent and accessible to the citizens. House Bill 1397, which defines the procedures for North Dakota redistricting this cycle, should be amended to ensure ample opportunity for public scrutiny and input before the final map is drawn.
LETTER TO THE EDITOR: Less gerrymandering in North Dakota
Devils Lake Journal
Does gerrymandering happen in North Dakota?
Gerrymandering happens when lawmakers draw new legislative district boundaries so as to favor themselves and their party in future elections.
In the year following each U.S. Census, legislative district boundaries must be redrawn so that each district has nearly the same number of voters. A committee of legislators updates the state’s district map. In other words, elected officials pick their voters, not the other way around.
Legislators want to be re-elected, so there is a motivation to use the redistricting process for incumbent protection. For instance, a legislator may have moved out of his district. “Let’s move the line so his new house is back in his old district.” Or, “I don’t want to have to run against that person; draw the line so that she’s not in my district.”
Proposed legislation damages voting system in ND 8:00 am, Feb. 1, 2021 ×
By Rick Gion | Fargo
There have been many news articles and letters to the editor recently regarding alarming elections legislation being discussed in the North Dakota Legislature.
North Dakota Voters First feels that these bills are a solution in search of a problem and are just plain unnecessary. We are a non-partisan voter advocacy group. Part of our job is to be a watchdog for potential voter suppression.
Unfortunately, this batch of very partisan legislation is being proposed by a small group of Republican legislators that are following a national trend of conspiracy-based opinions. This proposed legislation doesn’t strengthen our North Dakota voting system; it damages it.