"Donald Trump's decision to launch a nationwide mid-decade gerrymandering campaign last year made some raw political sense. He clearly thinks it's important that his party hang on to its governing trifecta in Washington and knows the odds for continued GOP control of the House are low on both historical and public-opinion grounds."
"What's less rational is the obsession Trump and his MAGA allies are exhibiting over the setback they experienced in Indiana, where last December the GOP-controlled state Senate rejected a new congressional map that would have extinguished the state's Democratic representation entirely, netting two new House seats."
"Still, the whole mid-decade gerrymandering campaign was simply a means to an end, not some matter of deep principle. You'd think Trump and his friends would move on and focus on"
Donald Trump launched an unprecedented nationwide gerrymandering campaign to protect Republican House control, recognizing that historical trends and polling suggest low odds for continued GOP dominance. The strategy made political sense given the small midterm battleground where rigging elections could significantly impact outcomes. Trump's influence over Republicans enabled sudden gerrymanders in GOP-controlled states, particularly after the Supreme Court removed judicial limitations on partisan gerrymandering. However, Democratic countermeasures in California and Virginia complicated the effort. Most notably, Trump and his allies became obsessively fixated on Indiana's rejection of a map that would have eliminated Democratic representation entirely, despite this being merely one component of a broader strategic campaign rather than a matter of principle.
#gerrymandering #trump-political-strategy #congressional-redistricting #republican-house-control #indiana-politics
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