Rotten boroughs, political thickets, and legislative donnybrooks : redistricting in Texas / edited by Gary A. Keith.

Format:

Book

Contributor:

Keith, Gary.

Series:

Jack and Doris Smothers Series in Texas History, Life, and Culture

Jack and Doris Smothers series in Texas history, life, and culture ; number thirty-seven

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Apportionment (Election law)--Texas.

Apportionment (Election law).

Election districts--Texas.

Election districts.

Demography--Political aspects--Texas.

Demography.

Texas--Politics and government.

Texas.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (225 p.)

Edition:

1st ed.

Place of Publication:

Austin, TX : University of Texas Press, 2013.

Language Note:

English

Summary:

Every ten years, the Texas legislature redistricts itself and the state’s congressional districts in an attempt to ensure equality in representation. With a richly textured cultural fabric, Texas often experiences redistricting battles that are heated enough to gain national attention. Collecting a variety of voices, including legislators themselves, in addition to lawyers, community organizers, political historians, and political scientists, Rotten Boroughs, Political Thickets, and Legislative Donnybrooks delivers a multidimensional picture of how redistricting works in Texas today, and how the process evolved. In addition to editor Gary Keith’s historical narrative, which emphasizes the aftermath of the Warren Court’s redistricting decisions, longtime litigators David Richards and J. D. Pauerstein describe the contentious lines drawn from the 1970s into the 2000s. Former state legislator and congressman Craig Washington provides an insider’s view, while redistricting attorney and grassroots organizer Jose Garza describes the repercussions for Mexican Americans in Texas. Balancing these essays with a quantitative perspective, political scientists Seth McKee and Mark McKenzie analyze the voting data for the 2000 decade to describe the outcomes of redistricting. The result is a timely tour that provides up-to-date context, particularly on the role of the Voting Rights Act in the twenty-first century. From local community engagement to the halls of the Capitol, this is the definitive portrait of redistricting and its repercussions for all Texans.

Contents:

Contents

Preface

Acknowledgments

Acronyms

Prologue: Scope and Methods

Introduction. The Prequel: Unequal Representation / Gary A. Keith

1. Entering the Thicket: 1965 / Gary A. Keith

2. Legislating in the Thicket / Craig A. Washington

3. Litigating Texas Redistricting : A Democratic Lawyer's Experience / David R. Richards

4. Texas Redistricting: A Republican Lawyer's Perspective / J. D. Pauerstein

5. The Voting Rights Organizers / José Garza

6. Analyzing Redistricting Outcomes / Seth C. McKee and Mark J. McKenzie

Conclusion. Redistricting Redux: 2011 and Beyond / Gary A. Keith

Notes

Sources

About the Contributors

Index.

Notes:

Description based upon print version of record.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

0-292-74541-9

OCLC:

932314400