California clears the final hurdle to ending prison gerrymandering

In a unanimous decision, California's Redistricting Commission follows state legislature’s recommendation to count incarcerated people at home

by Ginger Jackson-Gleich

When states, cities and counties draw new legislative districts this year, most of them will continue the unfair and undemocratic practice of prison gerrymandering: Counting people in prison as residents of their prison cells rather than of their hometowns. As a result, districts that contain prisons will have their political power artificially inflated, at the expense of districts without prisons.

The good news is that nine states have passed laws ending prison gerrymandering — and as of last week, California is officially among them.

After the 2010 redistricting cycle, the California legislature passed a collection of bills—AB 420 (2011), AB 1986 (2012), AB 2172 (2018), and AB 849 (2019)—that sought to end prison gerrymandering at all levels of government.

At the local level, that legislation requires city and county governments to adjust redistricting data by counting incarcerated people in their home communities, rather than at the correctional facilities where they are detained. At the state level, the legislation recommends that the Citizens Redistricting Commission make that same adjustment.

Last week, the Commission convened to discuss and vote on that recommendation. At the close of the meeting, the Commission adopted the legislature’s recommendation through a unanimous, bipartisan vote of all those present.

The vote followed presentations by our own Aleks Kajstura and by Karin Mac Donald, Director of California’s Statewide Database and the Election Administration Research Center at UC Berkeley, as well as the submission of a letter from Assemblymember Shirley Weber, Ph.D., author of AB 2172 and newly designated Secretary of State for California.

Illinois legislature passes bill ending prison gerrymandering

Illinois is poised to become the 10th state to end prison gerrymandering.

by Aleks Kajstura

Illinois' HB 3653, a major criminal justice reform package, contains provisions ending prison gerrymandering for state legislative districts. The final language passed both the Senate and House last Wednesday.

The bill was championed by Representative Slaughter and Senators Sims and Peters, building on the longstanding advocacy of Representative Ford.

If signed by Governor Pritzker, it will make Illinois the 10th state to end prison gerrymandering. This reform represents a culmination of a decade-long effort, including CHANGE Illinois and United Congress of Community and Religious Organizations tirelessly pushing for reform.

Stay tuned for updates.