Tonight, Indiana residents are invited to attend and testify on what they think of their current voting districts and what they would like to see in new districts. The testimony will be collected in the first statewide public hearing of the Indiana Citizens Redistricting Commission (ICRC), a diverse and multi-partisan group of Indiana voters that the redistricting coalition, All IN for Democracy, has assembled to serve as a model for how redistricting should be conducted.
The statewide virtual public hearing comes after the ICRC held hearings in every congressional district in the state. This is an opportunity for Hoosiers who were not able to make the congressional district hearings to make their voice heard. Commission members will discuss their preliminary findings and give voters another opportunity to weigh in on this important issue.
The public testimony will be included in a report to the Indiana General Assembly and will set the parameters for a public mapping competition for a statewide map of community-focused districts. The ICRC’s goal is to show the state legislators who are in charge of redistricting how a transparent and nonpartisan process results in maps that better reflect community interests.
“From Gary to Evansville, we’ve heard from voters who are frustrated by districts that were drawn in 2011 to serve the interests of politicians, not voters” said Julia Vaughn, policy director of Common Cause Indiana and leader of All IN for Democracy. “We’re getting a loud and clear message from the grassroots that people want the public interest to drive redistricting this time around.”
“The ICRC will show that a politically balanced group of citizens working transparently and in cooperation with citizens can devise districts that will serve the public interest, not the interests of politicians,” Vaughn continued. “We need more people involved in the conversation. If the legislature won’t draw fair maps, we will.”
Like most states, Indiana puts the state legislature in charge of redistricting. Since legislators draw the statehouse and Congressional district maps, they gerrymander districts to choose voters they already know will vote for them and exclude those who will vote against them. After the 2020 census data is released this fall, legislators will draw and adopt new districts that will be used for the next decade.
“Gerrymandering is the reason so many Indiana elected officials run unopposed, and why so many Indiana voters never cast a ballot,” Vaughn said. “Community members feel ignored and underserved. This is our once-in-a-decade opportunity for citizens to act. We want more competitive districts where every vote counts and every voice is heard.”
Indiana Citizens Redistricting Commission Statewide Virtual Public Hearing
WHO: Indiana Citizens Redistricting Commission
WHAT: A virtual statewide meeting to take public testimony about what Hoosier voters want from their new Congressional and state legislative districts.
WHEN: Thursday April 22, 2021 at 7:30pm ET
HOW: Register for the Zoom webinar here, https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_X1uov2e8TEOZyFvnzfu-OQ
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