CHF Update on State & Congressional Redistricting
Members of the LUM Campaign for Hoosier Families attended last week’s Indiana State 
Assembly hearing of the Special Interim Study Committee on Redistricting. The hearing room was packed and included volunteers with Common Cause and the League of Women Voters. There were people standing in the aisles and immediately outside the door watching a video monitor. In the hearing, Indiana State legislators discussed the possibility of forming a redistricting commission to draw district lines in Indiana.
Redistricting determines what district in which your vote counts. Right now, state legislators draw those lines themselves, which leads to districts boundaries drawn to help a legislator secure his or her seat in the next election – also known as gerrymandering. Three separate presentations were made at the meeting by attorney Jim Bopp (best known for his work on Citizen’s United), committee member Tom Sugar, and committee member Ted Boehm, respectively. Bopp came out against redistricting because he believes legislative districts are political policy choices and there is no way to take bias out of it. Sugar, former Bayh staffer and current Lead or Leave advocate, believes “elections are rigged” to let politicians choose who votes for them instead of letting voters choose their legislators. Boehm, former State Supreme court judge, spoke on whether or not the US Supreme Court is likely to rule that political gerrymandering violates the equal protection clause or first amendment.
No decision on the redistricting commission was made.
Additional Information
- Special Interim Study Committee on Redistricting — website
- Special Interim Study Committee on Redistricting – Final Report for 2015, click HERE
- City of Lafayette – Resolution Concerning Redistricting Reform (PDF), click HERE
- City of West Lafayette – Resolution in Support of Redistricting Reform (PDF), click HERE
- CHF Letter to Members of the Tippecanoe County Delegation (PDF), click HERE
CHF is an alliance of faith-based organizations that engages local, state, and federal officials on behalf of low income families and children. You’re invited to join the Campaign for Hoosier Families by taking up your pens and firing up your keyboards — help the PR group reach their goal of 50 new subscribers. Please join the conversation online, sign up to get the CHF alerts and check out the new CHF video.
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If you have any questions or would like additional information about the LUM Campaign for Hoosier Families, please check out the website or email or call Susan Brouillette (sbrouillette@lumserve.org | 765.423.2691)
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