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Redistribution (re-districting in the United States and in the Philippines) is the process by which electoral districts are added, removed, or otherwise changed. Redistribution is a form of
boundary delimitation Boundary delimitation (or simply delimitation) is the drawing of boundaries, particularly of electoral precincts, Federated state, states, counties or other municipalities.
that changes
electoral district An electoral district, also known as an election district, legislative district, voting district, constituency, riding, ward, division, or (election) precinct is a subdivision of a larger state (a country, administrative region, or other polity ...
boundaries, usually in response to periodic census results. Redistribution is required by law or constitution at least every decade in most
representative democracy Representative democracy, also known as indirect democracy, is a type of democracy where elected people represent a group of people, in contrast to direct democracy. Nearly all modern Western-style democracies function as some type of represen ...
systems that use
first-past-the-post In a first-past-the-post electoral system (FPTP or FPP), formally called single-member plurality voting (SMP) when used in single-member districts or informally choose-one voting in contrast to ranked voting, or score voting, voters cast their ...
or similar electoral systems to prevent geographic
malapportionment Apportionment is the process by which seats in a legislative body are distributed among administrative divisions, such as states or parties, entitled to representation. This page presents the general principles and issues related to apportionmen ...
. The act of manipulation of electoral districts to favour a candidate or party is called
gerrymandering In representative democracies, gerrymandering (, originally ) is the political manipulation of electoral district boundaries with the intent to create undue advantage for a party, group, or socioeconomic class within the constituency. The m ...
.


Australia

In Australia, redistributions are carried out by independent and non-partisan commissioners in the
Commonwealth A commonwealth is a traditional English term for a political community founded for the common good. Historically, it has been synonymous with "republic". The noun "commonwealth", meaning "public welfare, general good or advantage", dates from the ...
, and in each state or territory. The various electoral acts require the population of each seat to be equal, within certain strictly limited variations. The longest period between two redistributions can be no greater than seven years. Many other triggers can force redistribution before the chronological limit is reached. The redistribution is drafted by civil servants.


Canada

In Canada, the Constitution mandates that redistribution in the federal
House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of parliament. ...
occur "on the completion of each decennial census." The number of seats amongst the ten provinces is set by several related constitutional provisions. District boundaries within provinces are based on electoral quotients for that province. When the census indicates that a population change has occurred, an independent boundary commission issues a report of recommended changes. Changes are only made if passed into law by the federal Parliament. Similar processes are followed in each province, under provincial law.


India

India has an established process to redistribute its legislative districts. Redistributions are approved by political appointees to the
Boundary Commission of India The Delimitation commission or Boundary commission of India is a commission established by the Government of India under the provisions of the Delimitation Commission Act. The main task of the commission is redrawing the boundaries of the vari ...
.


Ireland

The
Constitution of Ireland The Constitution of Ireland ( ga, Bunreacht na hÉireann, ) is the constitution, fundamental law of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It asserts the national sovereignty of the Irish people. The constitution, based on a system of representative democra ...
states that general elections to the Dáil (lower house) must use the
single transferable vote Single transferable vote (STV) is a multi-winner electoral system in which voters cast a single vote in the form of a ranked-choice ballot. Voters have the option to rank candidates, and their vote may be transferred according to alternate p ...
(STV), that each Dáil constituency must return at least three members ( TDs), that boundaries must be revised at least every twelve years, and that the ratio of TDs to inhabitants (not voters or citizens) be between 20,000 and 30,000 on average and "so far as it is practicable" equal between constituencies. Electoral Acts are passed by the
Oireachtas The Oireachtas (, ), sometimes referred to as Oireachtas Éireann, is the Bicameralism, bicameral parliament of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. The Oireachtas consists of: *The President of Ireland *The bicameralism, two houses of the Oireachtas ...
to revise boundaries in light of the most recent census. In constituencies for the next general election, the 2016 population per TD averages 29,762, varying from 28,199 in Dublin North-West to 31,270 in
Dún Laoghaire Dún Laoghaire ( , ) is a suburban coastal town in Dublin in Ireland. It is the administrative centre of Dún Laoghaire–Rathdown. The town was built following the 1816 legislation that allowed the building of a major port to serve Dubli ...
. Since 1977, an independent body (since 1997 a permanent
Constituency Commission The Constituency Commission ( ga, An Coimisiún um Thoghlaigh) is an independent commission in Ireland which advises on redrawing of constituency boundaries of Dáil constituencies for the election of members to Dáil Éireann (the lower house ...
) recommends boundaries, which the Oireachtas usually accepts. The terms of reference of the Commission have set five seats as the maximum and discourage constituencies crossing
county A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesChambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...
boundaries. A separate
Local Electoral Area Boundary Committee A local electoral area (LEA; ga, Toghlimistéir Áitiúil) is an electoral area for elections to local authorities in Ireland. All elections use the single transferable vote. The Republic of Ireland is divided into 166 LEAs, with an average po ...
fulfils a similar function for
local electoral area A local electoral area (LEA; ga, Toghlimistéir Áitiúil) is an electoral area for elections to local authorities in Ireland. All elections use the single transferable vote. The Republic of Ireland is divided into 166 LEAs, with an average po ...
boundaries. A proposed
Electoral Commission An election commission is a body charged with overseeing the implementation of electioneering process of any country. The formal names of election commissions vary from jurisdiction to jurisdiction, and may be styled an electoral commission, a c ...
would replace both the Constituency Commission and the Local Electoral Area Boundary Committee. Before 1977, boundary drawing was often partisan in favour of the government of the day. The Electoral (Amendment) Act 1959 was struck out in 1961 by the
Supreme Court A supreme court is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts in most legal jurisdictions. Other descriptions for such courts include court of last resort, apex court, and high (or final) court of appeal. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...
as being repugnant to the Constitution because of excessive
malapportionment Apportionment is the process by which seats in a legislative body are distributed among administrative divisions, such as states or parties, entitled to representation. This page presents the general principles and issues related to apportionmen ...
. The replacement
Electoral (Amendment) Act 1961 The Electoral (Amendment) Act 1961 (No. 19) was a law in Ireland which revised Dáil constituencies. The new constituencies were first used at the 1961 general election to the 17th Dáil held on 4 October 1961. This Act replaced the Electoral ...
relied on manipulating district size The Supreme Court allowed the 1961 Act, ruling that the Oireachtas had wide latitude to decide what degree of divergence was "practicable" and what factors could be considered, but reserved the right to
judicial review Judicial review is a process under which executive, legislative and administrative actions are subject to review by the judiciary. A court with authority for judicial review may invalidate laws, acts and governmental actions that are incompat ...
of proposed boundaries. A 1968 proposal rejected by referendum would have specified one-sixth as the maximum constituency divergence from the average population per TD. Another proposal, rejected simultaneously, would have established a constituency commission (ancillary to replacing STV with
first-past-the-post voting In a first-past-the-post electoral system (FPTP or FPP), formally called single-member plurality voting (SMP) when used in single-member districts or informally choose-one voting in contrast to ranked voting, or score voting, voters cast their ...
). The
Electoral (Amendment) Act 1974 The Electoral (Amendment) Act 1974 (No. 7) was a law in Ireland which revised Dáil constituencies. It was a review of parliamentary constituencies passed in Ireland by the governing Fine Gael– Labour Party National Coalition. It was intended ...
attempted a manipulation similar to the 1961 act, but backfired when a larger than expected swing created a tipping point favouring the opposition in 1977. There was a lacuna after the publication of the 2016 census results in which the
Electoral (Amendment) (Dáil Constituencies) Act 2013 The Electoral (Amendment) (Dáil Constituencies) Act 2013 (No. 7) is a law of Ireland which revised Dáil constituencies in light of the 2011 census and a requirement to reduce the number of Dáil seats. The new constituencies took effect on t ...
was in force but its 158 seats breached the 30,000 population average; jurists wondered whether the courts would have permitted a general election in the interim before the
Electoral (Amendment) (Dáil Constituencies) Act 2017 The Electoral (Amendment) (Dáil Constituencies) Act 2017 (No. 39) is a law of Ireland which revised Dáil constituencies. It took effect on the dissolution of the 32nd Dáil on 14 January 2020 and a general election for the 33rd Dáil on t ...
resolved the issue.;


Japan

Japan does not have an established process to redistribute its legislative districts. The frequency of redistributions is irregular and not triggered a particular event. Redistributions are approved by the national legislature.


Mexico

In Mexico, an independent administrative body, called the
Instituto Nacional Electoral The Instituto Nacional Electoral (INE) (English for ''National Electoral Institute'') (formerly Federal Electoral Institute (, IFE)) is an autonomous, public agency responsible for organizing federal elections in Mexico, that is, those relate ...
, redraws congressional districts according to an objective scoring function and optimization algorithm. Although political parties can propose maps, the process is largely influences by redistricting algorithms.


New Zealand

New Zealand has a fixed process to determine how its legislative districts are redistributed. Redistribution in New Zealand happens every five years following the census.


Philippines

In the Philippines, redistricting is carried out by
Congress A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of a ...
after every quinquennial census is published. However, Congress has never passed a general redistricting act, and instead redistricts provinces or cities piecemeal, or creates new provinces or cities with legislative districts. The last general redistricting law was via the ordinance in the 1987 constitution, which was based from the 1980 census. The creation of a new province or city needs the approval of the public via a
plebiscite A referendum (plural: referendums or less commonly referenda) is a direct vote by the electorate on a proposal, law, or political issue. This is in contrast to an issue being voted on by a representative. This may result in the adoption of a ...
, while piecemeal redistricting does not need a plebiscite.


United Kingdom

In the United Kingdom, there are four Boundary Commissions (one each for England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland) responsible for reviewing the boundaries of Parliamentary constituencies. Members of Boundary Commissions are political appointees.


United States

In the United States, redistribution occurs after each decennial census. Most states' legislative district redistributions are approved by the state legislature.
Supreme Court A supreme court is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts in most legal jurisdictions. Other descriptions for such courts include court of last resort, apex court, and high (or final) court of appeal. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...
rulings (such as the
one man, one vote "One man, one vote", or "one person, one vote", expresses the principle that individuals should have equal representation in voting. This slogan is used by advocates of political equality to refer to such electoral reforms as universal suffrage, ...
principle) require that legislative districts have roughly equal populations.


See also

*
Apportionment The legal term apportionment (french: apportionement; Mediaeval Latin: , derived from la, portio, share), also called delimitation, is in general the distribution or allotment of proper shares, though may have different meanings in different c ...
*
Gerrymandering In representative democracies, gerrymandering (, originally ) is the political manipulation of electoral district boundaries with the intent to create undue advantage for a party, group, or socioeconomic class within the constituency. The m ...


Notes


References

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External links


A guide to Boundary Delimitation
a series of articles from th
ACE Project


— from th
ACE Project

Boundary Delimitation in the Legal Framework of Elections
— from th
International IDEA
publicatio
International Electoral Standards: Guidelines for reviewing the legal framework of elections
* Redistribution Overview from the
Australian Electoral Commission The Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) is the independent federal agency in charge of organising, conducting and supervising federal Australian elections, by-elections and referendums. Responsibilities The AEC's main responsibility is to ...

U.S. House of Representatives — District apportionment 1790 to 2000
Voting theory Constituencies