{"id":12352,"date":"2019-04-17T12:03:34","date_gmt":"2019-04-17T16:03:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.commoncause.org\/articles\/democracy-in-the-states-april-2019\/"},"modified":"2019-04-17T12:03:34","modified_gmt":"2019-04-17T16:03:34","slug":"democracy-in-the-states-april-2019","status":"publish","type":"article","link":"https:\/\/www.commoncause.org\/de\/articles\/democracy-in-the-states-april-2019\/","title":{"rendered":"Demokratie in den Staaten: April 2019"},"template":"","class_list":["post-12352","article","type-article","status-publish","hentry","article_type-blog-post"],"acf":{"details":{"summary":"Read Common Cause's April 2019 edition of \"Democracy In The States\" - tracking all the important democracy reform work (and some attacks) at the state and local level. ","featured_image":null,"article_type":1103,"authors":["{\"site_id\":\"1\",\"post_type\":\"person\",\"post_id\":8296}"],"related_issues":[103,137,169,2066,2082],"related_work":false,"location":null},"sidebar":{"helper_enable_sidebar":false,"helper_media_contact":{"heading":"Media Contact","manually_enter_person":false,"person":null,"name":"","role":"","phone":"","email":""},"helper_links_downloads":{"heading":"Links & Downloads","links":null}},"page_layout":[{"acf_fc_layout":"layout_wysiwyg","_acfe_flexible_toggle":null,"component_wysiwyg":{"content":"

\"\"Trends in Redistricting & Representation<\/span><\/h1>\r\n

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U.S. Supreme Court hears historic challenges to partisan gerrymandering<\/span>\u00a0<\/strong><\/h3>\r\n

\"\"Last month, the U.S. Supreme Court heard oral arguments in a pair of cases challenging the constitutionality of partisan gerrymandering in North Carolina and Maryland.\u00a0Rucho gegen Common Cause\u00a0<\/a><\/em>challenges North Carolina\u2019s GOP-drawn congressional map while\u00a0Benisek gegen Lamone<\/a><\/em>\u00a0challenges Maryland\u2019s Democratic-drawn 6th congressional district. Read our top takeaways on why we are hopeful the court will do the right thing and strike down these maps as unconstitutional gerrymanders\u00a0Hier<\/a>.<\/p>\r\nOn the day of the oral arguments, activists from several democracy reform and progressive groups gathered outside the Supreme Court to rally for fair maps and hear from a bipartisan group of elected leaders, including former Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger (R-CA), Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), Gov. Larry Hogan (R-MD), Rep. Alan Lowenthal (D-CA), Rep. Tom Reed (R-NY), Rep. Alma Adams (D-NC), Rep. Andy Harris (R-MD), and Rep. Don Beyer (D-VA), along with representatives from Common Cause, the League of Women Voters, the Southern Coalition for Social Justice, the Arab American Institute, Greenpeace USA, and the Campaign Legal Center. The bipartisan rally underscores the fact that all voters are hurt by partisan gerrymandering and it is a problem that both parties deal with.\r\n\r\n\"\"After the Supreme Court heard oral arguments in the cases, former U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder and Schwarzenegger sat down to talk about the fight to end gerrymandering at the National Press Club.\u00a0Watch the event here<\/a>.\r\n\r\n \r\n

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States consider redistricting changes ahead of 2021<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\r\n

Local campaigns to reform the redistricting process continue in many states. In\u00a0Virginia<\/strong>, the legislature recently\u00a0took the first step<\/a>\u00a0in creating a bipartisan redistricting commission ahead of 2021. Other legislation to change the redistricting process is being considering in numerous states, including\u00a0Minnesota<\/a>,\u00a0Pennsylvania<\/a>,\u00a0Oregon<\/a>,\u00a0North Carolina<\/a>, Und\u00a0Nebraska<\/a>.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n

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\"\"Trends in Voting & Elections<\/span><\/h1>\r\n \r\n\r\n \r\n\r\n \r\n

National Popular Vote sweeps the nation<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\r\n

Already in the 2019 sessions, Common Cause has helped pass the National Popular Vote (NPV) compact in three states: Colorado<\/strong>,\u00a0New-Mexiko<\/strong>, Und\u00a0Delaware<\/strong>. All three bills have now been signed into law, meaning we are just 81 electoral votes away from enacting the compact and electing the next president by the national popular vote. NPV has also passed in the\u00a0Oregon<\/strong>\u00a0Senate and\u00a0Nevada<\/strong>\u00a0Assembly this year, and is expected to move in the other chambers in those states. Other active NPV campaigns continue in\u00a0Maine\u00a0<\/strong>Und\u00a0New Hampshire<\/strong>.\u00a0Read more about the National Popular Vote compact<\/a>.<\/p>\r\n\"\"\r\n\r\n \r\n

States advance voting rights reform<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\r\n

States across the country are moving commonsense election reforms aimed at expanding and protecting voting rights, including in:<\/p>\r\n\r\n