Bring the Senseless Redistricting War to An End

Floor Speech

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Mr. KILEY of California. Mr. Speaker, this is the moment to bring the senseless redistricting war to an end.

Today, a Federal District Court tossed out the gerrymandered map in Texas with an appeal headed straight to the Supreme Court. California's gerrymandered map is facing a similar legal challenge. We don't know how these cases will turn out, so there is uncertainty at this moment whether the whole redistricting war is going to end as a wash or with a modest advantage for one party or the other.

Now, it really shouldn't matter. I am against gerrymandering wherever it occurs no matter which party stands to benefit, but this present uncertainty has created a window of opportunity for a bipartisan agreement to bring this madness to an end.

Mr. Speaker, I have introduced H.R. 4889 to ban mid-decade redistricting in every State in the country. I am calling on House leadership to do the right thing and bring this bill to the floor for a vote. Not only is it supported widely by Members in this body but a poll showed that the American people support this proposal by a 3 to 1 margin. Let's pass this legislation and restore a dose of sanity to politics in this country.

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