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Prof. Justin Levitt's Doug Spencer's Guide to Drawing the Electoral Lines
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Criteria for 2010 congressional districts

2020 Congress        2020 State Legislature

2010 Congress        2010 State Legislature

The table below shows the different critera that redistricting bodies in the 2010 redistricting cycle considered when they drew congressional lines, and the state law sources for those criteria.

In most states, these standards had to be followed only as closely “as is practicable,” leaving substantial flexibility to the redistricting body — but in some states, state law is more specific or more constraining.  The links lead to the specific legal provisions, and more information is available in the writeup for each state — just click on the state’s name.

In every state, these standards are always subordinate to federal equal population limits and to the federal Voting Rights Act.

A blank space indicates that the state did not have a particular legal provision on the issue in question, at least as far as I am aware.

 

State law on
equal pop.		 State law on
race/ethnicity		 Contiguity Compactness Political
boundaries		 Communities
of interest		 Electoral
outcomes
Alabama Guidelines Guidelines Guidelines Guidelines Guidelines Guidelines Guidelines
Alaska One congressional district
Arizona Constitution Constitution Constitution Constitution Constitution Constitution
Arkansas
California Constitution Constitution Constitution Constitution Constitution Constitution
Colorado
Connecticut
Delaware One congressional district
Florida Constitution Constitution Constitution Constitution Constitution
Georgia Guidelines Guidelines Guidelines Guidelines Guidelines
Hawaii Statute Statute Statute Statute Statute
Idaho Statute Statute Statute Statute
Illinois
Indiana
Iowa Statute Statute Statute Constitution Statute
Kansas Guidelines Guidelines Guidelines Guidelines Guidelines Guidelines Guidelines
Kentucky Guidelines Guidelines
Louisiana Guidelines Guidelines Guidelines
Maine Statute Statute Statute
Maryland
Massachusetts
Michigan Statute Statute Statute Statute
Minnesota Statute Statute Statute
Mississippi
Missouri Constitution Constitution
Montana
Nebraska Guidelines Guidelines Guidelines Guidelines Guidelines
Nevada
New Hampshire
New Jersey
New Mexico Guidelines Guidelines Guidelines Guidelines Guidelines Guidelines
New York
North Carolina
North Dakota One congressional district
Ohio
Oklahoma
Oregon Statute Statute Statute Statute Statute Statute
Pennsylvania
Rhode Island Statute Statute Statute Statute
South Carolina Guidelines Guidelines Guidelines Guidelines Guidelines Guidelines
South Dakota One congressional district
Tennessee
Texas
Utah Guidelines Guidelines Guidelines
Vermont One congressional district
Virginia Constitution Constitution Guidelines
Washington Constitution Constitution Constitution Constitution Statute Constitution
West Virginia Constitution Constitution
Wisconsin
Wyoming One congressional district