In today’s episode, I’m going to talk about a very interesting political topic, gerrymandering.
Gerrymandering is not just an interesting word, it is also a serious issue and especially relevant right now. It is constantly in the news in the USA, as this year, Texas and some other US states have decided to redraw or change their congressional maps.
This is of course causing a lot of political tension and debate across the country and has brought the word gerrymandering back into people’s vocabulary.
In this episode, I’m going to explain what gerrymandering is, why it happens, and whether it should be allowed.
And then I want to also look at some other unusual English political words and phrases that I think you guys will all be interested in and maybe can add to your vocabulary in the future.
Listen Here!
Apple Podcasts
Spotify
YouTubeInteractive Transcript!
You Can Now Read and Listen at the Same Time With an Interactive Transcript!
Vocabulary
- Redraw (v): To revise or alter the shape, layout, or design of something
- The commission decided to redraw the city map to better reflect population changes.
- Redistricting (n): The official process of modifying the boundaries of electoral districts.
- Redistricting after the census can significantly change the balance of power in Congress.
- Electoral district (n): A defined area whose residents vote for a representative in a parliament or congress.
- Each electoral district elects one member of Parliament to represent local interests.
- Seat (n): A position of authority or representation in a parliament.
- The party gained five additional seats in the national parliament after the election.
- Boundaries (n): Borders or limits that define an area, region, or jurisdiction.
- Changing the boundaries of the district can influence which party wins the vote.
- Politician (n): A person actively involved in government, typically holding or seeking elected office.
- Many politicians make promises during campaigns that are difficult to fulfil.
What is Gerrymandering?
Right now, gerrymandering is a big topic in the news because of events happening in Texas.
The Republican party in Texas is redrawing congressional maps, so the maps that are used to elect people to Congress in the USA. This is very unusual because these maps are normally only changed after the census every 10 [00:04:00] years.
The census is the national survey to discover how many people are living in a country, who they are and where they’re living. This early redistricting is called mid-decade redistricting.
The main reason they are doing this is because of political advantage. The Republican party in Texas wants to gain more seats in Congress. They want to secure their power before the 2026 elections.
They are hoping to take advantage of recent trends in voting, such as Latino voters or Spanish speaking voters in Texas who tended to support the Republican Party in the 2024 Presidential election.
So by changing the boundaries of districts, they hope they can increase the number of Republican representatives in Congress, even if [00:05:00] the overall vote is actually closer during the election.
They do this by changing the boundaries of districts to include more voters who support their party, the Republican Party, or to reduce the number of voters who support the opposition, the Democratic party.
Imagine there are two electoral districts next to each other.
One district voted 80% for the Republicans and 20% for the Democrats in the last election. The second district voted 45% for Republicans and 55% for Democrats. Each district elects just one politician.
You could change these districts. Because they’re next to each other, you could redraw the map. You could redraw the boundaries so that the second district has more Republican voters and less Democrat voters, while [00:06:00] still keeping a big majority in the first district.
In response to the Texas plans, some Democratic politicians left Texas to try and stop this redistricting.
This was a dramatic tactic, but it has been used before, including the last time mid-decade redistricting was attempted in 2003.
This time, the Texas Governor Greg Abbott threatened to arrest legislators and politicians who tried to block the process.
The Supreme Court has also influenced this situation.
In 2019, the court said that federal courts, so national level courts in the USA, cannot stop gerrymandering or redistricting. Which means that states have more freedom to draw maps in favor of one party.
However, the Voting Rights Act of [00:07:00] 1965 still puts limits on reducing the voting power of minority groups, and there are lots of ongoing legal cases about this.
Other states are watching Texas closely. New York, California, Missouri, Florida, and Ohio could see similar battles over redistricting, and this could definitely affect the balance of power in the US Congress, especially in the US House of Representatives.
Gerrymandering Explained
So in this episode, I’ve used the term gerrymandering a few times.
I guess I should try and explain what gerrymandering is in more detail. The word comes from Elbridge Gerry, a governor of Massachusetts in the US in the early 1800s.
He created an electoral district, shaped like a salamander to help his party win elections.
That [00:08:00] combination of his name, Gerry, and the strange shape, Salamander, gave us the term gerrymander.
So gerrymandering is when politicians draw or design voting districts to give their party an advantage. Instead of voters choosing politicians. Gerrymandering allows politicians to choose their voters by shaping districts.
And these districts can often be very strange in shape. They might be very long and thin. Or in the case of Elbridge Gerry look like a salamander.
There are two main techniques politicians use to gerrymander.
The first technique is called packing.
This is when opposition voters are concentrated into a single district. By putting most or many of the opposition party supporters in one area, that district will [00:09:00] obviously vote strongly for the opposition, but it reduces their influence in other districts.
The second technique is called cracking.
This is when opposition voters are spread across several districts. Their votes are diluted, made weak, so they are unlikely to have a majority in any district. This makes it easier for the party in power to win more districts, even if the overall vote is close.
So the two techniques again, are put all of your opposition voters in one district so that they don’t affect anywhere else in the State, or spread them around the State so that they’re not as powerful.
Other countries often try to prevent this. For example, in the UK and Canada, independent commissions, independent groups draw districts based on [00:10:00] census data to make them fairer.
The US is quite unique, really, as it lets politicians vote for these decisions themselves. And of course, politicians are selfish and naturally going to try and secure their party’s power.
Other countries use proportional representation. So proportional representation is where seats are given based on overall votes, making gerrymandering less effective.
Should Gerrymandering be Legal?
Gerrymandering is legal in the United States, but I think it raises important questions about fairness and democracy.
On the one hand, the US Constitution gives states the power to draw their own congressional districts. And in 2019, the US Supreme Court ruled that courts cannot stop gerrymandering.
This means that under the law, [00:11:00] States are free to draw electoral maps that favor one party.
Supporters argue that gerrymandering is simply a part of politics and that every party has the opportunity to use it when they are in power.
On the other hand, I personally think gerrymandering can undermine democracy. When districts are drawn to benefit one party, whether the Democrats or the Republican Party, politicians are essentially choosing their voters, instead of the voters choosing their representatives.
It can make elections less competitive and reduce the influence of groups of voters, especially minority voters, even if they make up a significant part of the population.
There are some legal limits in the USA. The Voting Rights Act protects minority voting power and tries to prevent districts from being [00:12:00] drawn in ways that weaken minority votes.
And some states, like I think California, use nonpartisan, groups of people who are not politically aligned, to draw their districts and try and reduce the influence of party politics.
I guess my question for all of you listening is, Should this be allowed? Should gerrymandering be allowed?
Other Interesting Political Terms
But before we get to the end of the episode, there are many other interesting political terms in English.
Gerrymandering is one of my favorite. In fact, it’s one of my favorite English words.
When I studied political science at high school and university, I really enjoyed learning the more unique political terms and concepts. So I thought I would end this episode by introducing a few more. A few more interesting English political words.
Let’s start with filibuster.
A filibuster is a tactic in politics [00:13:00] where a politician speaks for a long time to delay or block a vote. This is often used in parliaments and congresses, when a party wants to stop a law from passing.
For example, in 1957 Strom Thurmond spoke for 24 hours and 18 minutes in the US Senate. He was attempting to stop the US government from introducing civil rights for African Americans. He wasn’t the nicest politician.
But he recited the entire US Bill of Rights, the Declaration of Independence, and many other historical documents.
Another interesting term is pork barrel.
Pork barrel refers to government spending on local projects designed to please voters or legislators. For example, a politician might fund a new bridge in their [00:14:00] district to gain support from local residents.
There was an example of pork barrel politics or pork barreling in the London area of Tower Hamlets a few years ago. The mayor of the area used a lot of his budget to give things to the Bangladeshi community living in Tower Hamlets.
They were his biggest supporters, but only made up about 30% of the population. However, he won elections based on the votes of those 30% of people. The other 70% did not receive much funding from his mayoral office.
A lame duck is not a bird that can’t fly, but a lame duck is an elected official whose power is weakened because they will soon leave office.
For instance, a president in the final months of their term might be called a lame [00:15:00] duck because Congress and the public pay less attention to their decisions.
A QUANGO is a quasi autonomous, non-governmental organization, or QUANGO. Which is a very long term, but it basically means it’s funded by the government, but operates independently.
Quangos often manage public services without direct political control. These were a big, big news topic in the UK when I was in high school, I think so in the 2010s, and many of them were shut down.
A Whip is a political party official whose job is to make sure members vote according to party lines.
Whips communicate between leaders and members trying to keep everyone in agreement. These are often found in countries with parliamentary democracies like the UK, Australia, Canada, and [00:16:00] India.
And then finally, the final interesting political word I’ll introduce today, is horse trading.
Horse trading refers to negotiating and making political deals. Often involving compromise or backroom arrangements. Politicians might trade support on one bill to gain votes for another.
Final Thought
Today I talked about gerrymandering. What it is, why it happens, and how it affects politics in the United States. We looked at the current situation in Texas and some other US states and then explored some unusual political terms.
Gerrymandering shows how political power can be shaped, not just by votes, but also by the way districts are drawn.
While it is legal in the USA, it raises [00:17:00] questions about fairness and democracy. The choice between political advantage and fair representation is something that every voter and every citizen of a country should think about.
Understanding terms like filibuster, pork barrel, lame duck, QUANGO, whip, horse trading, and of course, gerrymandering can also help you follow political news and conversations more easily.
But what do you think? Do you think gerrymandering is fair or should it be banned? And which of the political terms that I discussed today did you find the most interesting or useful?
Extended Vocabulary List
Become a Patreon Subscriber to Access the Extended Vocabulary List!
Vocabulary Games and Activities!
Learn and practice vocabulary from this Thinking in English episode.
Practice using 5 different study games and activities – including writing, listening, and memorisation techniques!
Flashcards
Matching Game
Learning Game
Test Yourself
Listening and Spelling
Do you want to Think in English?
I’m so excited that you found my blog and podcast!! If you don’t want to miss an article or an episode, you can subscribe to my page!
