If my packing the house post did not sufficiently explain how gerrymandering can, well, pack the house then perhaps the folks at the USC Game Innovation Lab and the USC Annenberg Center for Communications can do a better job.
They have developed a surprisingly fun game to demonstrate how to use redistricting to further political aims. They show how a political operative can draw districts to:
- perform a partisan gerrymander that favors one party
- perform a bipartisan gerrymander that favors multiple parties and ensures the reelection of incumbents
- satisfy the requirements of the Voting Rights Act yet still achieve a partisan gerrymander
Additionally, and perhaps unintentionally, they show how a proposed reform can be shot down by those who have a political stake in the outcome.
You can play the game at http://www.redistrictinggame.org/. Warning: the game requires flash.