Your voice and vote matters
Meet Anthony. He loves where he lives, his two daughters, and his sports team (go Cobras!). He also cares about what happens in his local community. The decisions that are made that affect his family’s health, education, work and safety. He wants to use his vote to have his say.
But, Anthony’s vote - and your vote - are getting harder to count
Here's why
Redistricting changes how much your vote counts
Red and blue represent voters who support different political parties
=50%
=50%
This is when states redraw electoral district boundaries based on the latest census data. A bit like this:
Texas's 1st District - 2020 redistricting cycle
If done fairly, the map accurately reflects communities and protects voters. Like this:
But when it’s not…
...your vote gets diluted.
If lines aren’t drawn fairly, they can:
Pack
Crack
This is called ‘gerrymandering’. So, depending on where Anthony lives, his vote and voice might not be heard.
Gerrymandering is harmful because it can split up communities along racial lines and weaken their political voice.
52%
26%
39%
41%
21%
Here’s a famous example from Mississippi - the district lines split communities of color between majority-white districts
Black % of voting-age population
Original districts
Lines split Black voters
But there's also...
Lines stay in place
Gerrymandering is harmful because it can split up communities along racial lines and weaken their political voice.
44%
44%
40%
21%
35%
The only majority - Black district is eliminated
Here’s a famous example from Mississippi - the district lines split communities of color between majority-white districts
Black % of voting-age population
Original districts
Lines split Black voters
But there's also...
Lines stay in place
Gerrymandering is harmful because it can split up communities along racial lines and weaken their political voice.
The only majority - Black district is eliminated
Still no majority-Black district 15 years later'
Here’s a famous example from Mississippi - the district lines split communities of color between majority-white districts
Original districts
Lines split Black voters
But there's also...
Lines stay in place
But there’s another way of redistricting that’s equally dangerous, but not so obvious. It’s called ‘dilutive drift’.
This dilutes your and Anthony's votes through inaction. Communities grow, but representation doesn’t. Over time, this could make racial injustice worse.
This is when demographics shift, but electoral district boundaries stay the same.
Mapmakers refuse to create new districts where communities of color have a chance to elect their preferred candidates. By not changing the voting lines as the population changes, voters of colour can be passively ‘packed’ or ‘cracked’, confined to districts where they can’t influence elections.
Passive PackingClick to see response
Passive CrackingClick to see response
white voters
black voters
This isn’t fair!
Voting power drift over 20 years. Click below to see the change over the years in the example states:
Percent White Population
80% or more
70 - 79%
60 - 69%
50 - 59%
less than 50%
Minnesota
Louisiana
Alabama
What can we do?
2000
2010
2020
This isn’t fair!
Voting power drift over 20 years. Click below to see the change over the years in the example states:
Percent White Population
80% or more
70 - 79%
60 - 69%
50 - 59%
less than 50%
Minnesota
Just one majority-Black district in a state almost one-third Black
Louisiana
Growing diversity in the Twin Cities area
Black voters cracked across majority-white districts
Black voters packed into a single majority-Black district
Alabama
What can we do?
2010
2000
2020
This isn’t fair!
Voting power drift over 20 years. Click below to see the change over the years in the example states:
Percent White Population
80% or more
70 - 79%
60 - 69%
50 - 59%
less than 50%
Minnesota
Just one majority-Black district in a state almost one-third Black
Louisiana
Growing diversity in the Twin Cities area
Black voters cracked across majority-white districts
Black voters packed into a single majority-Black district
Alabama
What can we do?
2020
2000
2010
We have to speak up!
Learn more and take action. Find your congressional district: Discover how redistricting works in your state: Find out more about dilutive drift:
Research funded by the British Academy (Grant No. MCFSS22\220016).
Cracking
CRACK or separate communities across multiple districts to dilute their voting power. Blue voters are cracked across multiple Red districts. Red wins 3 seats.
Prevent Passive Cracking
- Avoid spreading a community too thin across districts.
- Keep communities unified where possible.
- Enable voters to influence election outcomes.
Prevent Passive Packing
- Avoid concentrating a community into one district.
- Allow voters to influence more than one election.
- Support representation that reflects the population.
Packing
PACK communities that generally vote for one political party into one district, to reduce their influence in other districts. Red voters are packed into a single Red district. Blue wins 3 seats.
Your Voice and Vote Matters
Laura Evans
Created on March 9, 2026
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Transcript
Your voice and vote matters
Meet Anthony. He loves where he lives, his two daughters, and his sports team (go Cobras!). He also cares about what happens in his local community. The decisions that are made that affect his family’s health, education, work and safety. He wants to use his vote to have his say.
But, Anthony’s vote - and your vote - are getting harder to count
Here's why
Redistricting changes how much your vote counts
Red and blue represent voters who support different political parties
=50%
=50%
This is when states redraw electoral district boundaries based on the latest census data. A bit like this:
Texas's 1st District - 2020 redistricting cycle
If done fairly, the map accurately reflects communities and protects voters. Like this:
But when it’s not…
...your vote gets diluted.
If lines aren’t drawn fairly, they can:
Pack
Crack
This is called ‘gerrymandering’. So, depending on where Anthony lives, his vote and voice might not be heard.
Gerrymandering is harmful because it can split up communities along racial lines and weaken their political voice.
52%
26%
39%
41%
21%
Here’s a famous example from Mississippi - the district lines split communities of color between majority-white districts
Black % of voting-age population
Original districts
Lines split Black voters
But there's also...
Lines stay in place
Gerrymandering is harmful because it can split up communities along racial lines and weaken their political voice.
44%
44%
40%
21%
35%
The only majority - Black district is eliminated
Here’s a famous example from Mississippi - the district lines split communities of color between majority-white districts
Black % of voting-age population
Original districts
Lines split Black voters
But there's also...
Lines stay in place
Gerrymandering is harmful because it can split up communities along racial lines and weaken their political voice.
The only majority - Black district is eliminated
Still no majority-Black district 15 years later'
Here’s a famous example from Mississippi - the district lines split communities of color between majority-white districts
Original districts
Lines split Black voters
But there's also...
Lines stay in place
But there’s another way of redistricting that’s equally dangerous, but not so obvious. It’s called ‘dilutive drift’.
This dilutes your and Anthony's votes through inaction. Communities grow, but representation doesn’t. Over time, this could make racial injustice worse.
This is when demographics shift, but electoral district boundaries stay the same.
Mapmakers refuse to create new districts where communities of color have a chance to elect their preferred candidates. By not changing the voting lines as the population changes, voters of colour can be passively ‘packed’ or ‘cracked’, confined to districts where they can’t influence elections.
Passive PackingClick to see response
Passive CrackingClick to see response
white voters
black voters
This isn’t fair!
Voting power drift over 20 years. Click below to see the change over the years in the example states:
Percent White Population
80% or more
70 - 79%
60 - 69%
50 - 59%
less than 50%
Minnesota
Louisiana
Alabama
What can we do?
2000
2010
2020
This isn’t fair!
Voting power drift over 20 years. Click below to see the change over the years in the example states:
Percent White Population
80% or more
70 - 79%
60 - 69%
50 - 59%
less than 50%
Minnesota
Just one majority-Black district in a state almost one-third Black
Louisiana
Growing diversity in the Twin Cities area
Black voters cracked across majority-white districts
Black voters packed into a single majority-Black district
Alabama
What can we do?
2010
2000
2020
This isn’t fair!
Voting power drift over 20 years. Click below to see the change over the years in the example states:
Percent White Population
80% or more
70 - 79%
60 - 69%
50 - 59%
less than 50%
Minnesota
Just one majority-Black district in a state almost one-third Black
Louisiana
Growing diversity in the Twin Cities area
Black voters cracked across majority-white districts
Black voters packed into a single majority-Black district
Alabama
What can we do?
2020
2000
2010
We have to speak up!
Learn more and take action. Find your congressional district: Discover how redistricting works in your state: Find out more about dilutive drift:
Research funded by the British Academy (Grant No. MCFSS22\220016).
Cracking
CRACK or separate communities across multiple districts to dilute their voting power. Blue voters are cracked across multiple Red districts. Red wins 3 seats.
Prevent Passive Cracking
Prevent Passive Packing
Packing
PACK communities that generally vote for one political party into one district, to reduce their influence in other districts. Red voters are packed into a single Red district. Blue wins 3 seats.