Posted September 26, 2018 | by KimS | in DemDaily, Elections, Resource

DemDaily: Staking The Stakes In The Redistricting Process

September 26, 2018

While the 2018 midterm elections are expected to flip control of the US House, an equally important outcome is control of the state legislatures and gubernatorial seats that will shape future congressional districts.

The decennial (every ten years) population census will be taken in 2020, and from that the 2021 redistricting, or redrawing, of the electoral district map in each state will take place.

The majority of redistricting plans will be drawn by State Legislatures, with many subject to final approval by the state's Governor. Republicans currently hold 64 of the 99 state chambers and 33 of the 50 Governor's seats.

Each state determines its own process for drawing electoral lines, with 27 drawn by state legislatures, 12 by an independent or bipartisan redistricting commission, and 4 by independent bodies but with final approval by the legislature.

Of the bipartisan commissions, however, only Arizona and California are considered truly independent as the others are appointed by, or report to, the legislature.

NDRC Target (Black) and Watch (Blue) States

According to the National Democratic Redistricting Committee, the state chambers and governor's races that are most important for shifting or retaining the balance of power in the redistricting process, are highlighted below.

Early Voting has started in Idaho, Minnesota, New Jersey, South Dakota, Vermont and Wyoming, and starts tomorrow in Illinois, Iowa, North Dakota. Make your vote count!

State Legislative and Gubernatorial Control

State	House Majority	Senate Majority	Governor	Redistricting Process
Alabama	Republican	Republican	Republican	State Legislatures
Alaska*	Republican	Republican	Independent	Single District N/A
Arizona	Republican	Republican	Republican	Independent/Bipartisan Commission
Arkansas	Republican	Republican	Republican	Independent/Bipartisan Commission
California	Democrat	Democrat	Democrat	Independent/Bipartisan Commission
Colorado	Democrat	Republican	Democrat	Independent/Bipartisan Commission
Connecticut	Democrat	Split	Democrat	State Legislatures
Delaware	Democrat	Democrat	Democrat	Single District N/A
Florida	Republican	Republican	Republican	State Legislatures
Georgia	Republican	Republican	Republican	State Legislatures
Hawaii	Democrat	Democrat	Democrat	Independent/Bipartisan Commission
Idaho	Republican	Republican	Republican	Independent/Bipartisan Commission
Illinois	Democrat	Democrat	Republican	State Legislatures
Indiana	Republican	Republican	Republican	State Legislatures
Iowa	Republican	Republican	Republican	State Legislatures
Kansas	Republican	Republican	Republican	State Legislatures
Kentucky	Republican	Republican	Republican	State Legislatures
Louisiana	Republican	Republican	Democrat	State Legislatures
Maine	Democrat	Republican	Republican	Independent Commission/Legislative Approval
Maryland	Democrat	Democrat	Republican	State Legislatures
Massachusetts	Democrat	Democrat	Republican	State Legislatures
Michigan	Republican	Republican	Republican	State Legislatures
Minnesota	Republican	Split	Democrat	State Legislatures
Mississippi	Republican	Republican	Republican	State Legislatures
Missouri	Republican	Republican	Republican	Independent/Bipartisan Commission
Montana	Republican	Republican	Democrat	Independent/Bipartisan Commission
Nebraska	Nonpartisan Unicameral	Nonpartisan Unicameral	Republican	State Legislatures
Nevada	Democrat	Democrat	Republican	State Legislatures
New Hampshire	Republican	Republican	Republican	State Legislatures
New Jersey	Democrat	Democrat	Democrat	Independent/Bipartisan Commission
New Mexico	Democrat	Democrat	Republican	State Legislatures
New York	Democrat	Democrat	Democrat	Independent Commission/Legislative Approval
North Carolina	Republican	Republican	Democrat	State Legislatures
North Dakota	Republican	Republican	Republican	Single District N/A
Ohio	Republican	Republican	Republican	Independent/Bipartisan Commission
Oklahoma	Republican	Republican	Republican	State Legislatures
Oregon	Democrat	Democrat	Democrat	State Legislatures
Pennsylvania	Republican	Republican	Democrat	Independent/Bipartisan Commission
Rhode Island	Democrat	Democrat	Democrat	Independent Commission /Legislative Approval
South Carolina	Republican	Republican	Republican	State Legislatures
South Dakota	Republican	Republican	Republican	Single District N/A
Tennessee	Republican	Republican	Republican	State Legislatures
Texas	Republican	Republican	Republican	State Legislatures
Utah	Republican	Republican	Republican	State Legislatures
Vermont	Democrat	Democrat	Republican	Single District N/A
Virginia	Republican	Republican	Democrat	Independent Commission /Legislative Approval
Washington	Democrat	Democrat	Democrat	Independent/Bipartisan Commission
West Virginia	Republican	Republican	Republican	State Legislatures
Wisconsin	Republican	Republican	Republican	State Legislatures
Wyoming	Republican	Republican	Republican	Single District N/A

Seven states (Alaska, Delaware, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Vermont and Wyoming) have only one congressional district so redistricting doesn't apply. Likewise, the five US territories and the District of Columbia, which each send a non-voting delegate to the House of Representatives, are also not affected by redistricting.