From Common Cause

Leading activists, academics and attorneys in the national redistricting reform movement will convene in North Carolina today and Saturday to plot the demise of gerrymandering in 2019.

The reformers at the third annual Reason, Reform & Redistricting Conference convened by Common Cause are taking an all-in approach – fighting for fair maps in citizen-led ballot initiatives, pushing state legislation and taking two high-profile cases to the U.S. Supreme Court in March – to ensure every vote counts and every voice is heard.

Their goal is to have a new, clear national standard against partisan gerrymandering and clear pathways for states to draw congressional and legislative boundaries that are fair, impartial and responsive to people rather than politicians. Time is of the essence as states will use the 2020 Census to draw voting maps that will impact who is elected and represented for the decade to come.

“This is the year that redistricting as we know it must change. Elections should be decided by voters, not the politicians drawing the maps. We’ve won at the ballot box, we’ve won in the courts, and momentum is in our favor as we head to the Supreme Court,” said Kathay Feng, national director for redistricting at Common Cause and architect of the California Citizens Redistricting Commission, the gold standard in state-based, independent redistricting commissions.

Read full report here.