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To the editor of the Journal:
Using the “5 why” a root cause tool, we can begin to reduce our political divide.
Problem: legislative blockage at state and federal levels.
5 Whys process:
1) Why do elected officials struggle to find common ground in drafting and passing laws that benefit all citizens? Because state and federal lawmakers tend to follow the political guidelines of their party leader, which discourages working across the aisle.
2) Why do our elected officials follow the directives of the Party bosses? Because they run a low risk of being removed from their posts.
3) Why are representatives at low risk of being eliminated? Because every 10 years, the district lines are redrawn by the majority of the state’s political controllers using census data. The party in charge shifts the lines to tip the scales in its favor for re-election (called Gerrymandering), similar to a casino adjusting its slot payout.
4) Why doesn’t the federal government pass a law to force states to draw district boundaries in a non-partisan way? The US Constitution leaves the voting process to the states, and the Supreme Court has refused to rule.
5) Why are the States not mobilizing to repair Gerrymandering? Because lawmakers in Republican-controlled or Democratic-controlled states have little incentive to submit a voting initiative to have districts redesigned in a non-partisan fashion.
In 1812 Elbridge Gerry of Massachusetts drew up a district to promote his own political party which looked like a salamander and so called “Gerrymander.” Gerrymandering has been a problem for two hundred years, but if district boundaries can be redrawn through a non-partisan process, our elected officials will be encouraged to work across the aisle as they should represent both “Red” and “Blue” voters in their constituency to be re-elected.
Good news: In 2018, 61% of Michigan voters approved a ballot initiative to create an independent commission to redraw the maps of Congress and state law after the 2020 census. Michigan is the country. one of four states, along with Arizona, California and Colorado, that have withdrawn elected officials and political parties from the process of redefining political lines. We have 46 states to go before Gerrymandering is completely eliminated.
The removal of Gerrymandering will bring us one step closer to the long road to unifying our country.
See the state redistricting processes: https://www.ncsl.org/research/redistricting/redistricting-systems-a-50-state-overview.aspx#
Thank you for your time.
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