It’s time to fix the redistricting mess

Pennsylvania’s congressional districts are drawn to favor incumbents and disadvantage challengers.

To the victor goes the spoils. It’s an old saying, but never more accurate when it comes to the way Pennsylvania’s Congressional districts are drawn.

Consider, for instance, the 7th Congressional, which covers a swath of southeastern Pennsylvania. Pat Meehan has been the 7th District congressman since winning office in 2010. You might remember that’s also the year Democrat Joe Sestak gave up the seat to challenge incumbent U.S. Sen. Arlen Specter. Meehan rolled to an easy win, just as he has in to successive elections since.

The 7th District was once considered a toss-up after Sestak ended Curt Weldon’s 20-year reign in Washington. But something changed. That something is called redistricting. Done every 10 years supposedly to reflect changes noted in the census, it instead usually reflects partisan politics and those in control making sure things remain that way.

Don’t automatically shovel the blame on Republicans. Democrats have been guilty of doing the same thing when they hold the reins of power.

The 7th District is now a bizarre amalgam of suburban Philadelphia.

It covers the bulk of Delaware County, but it now zigs and zags to include five different counties, including small parts of Berks, Chester, Montgomery and even a sliver of Lancaster counties.

Redistricting has taken what was a tossup district and turned it solidly red, by carving into traditionally Republican strongholds and including them in the 7th.

Hence, Meehan has cruised to three consecutive dominant wins in which he routinely racks up 60 percent of the vote.

But don’t blame Meehan for this mess.

Congress does not handle redistricting. That job falls to the state Legislature, and since Republicans have been in solid control of the Pennsylvania Legislature, they get to “make the rules” when it comes to how the districts are reformed.

The result: A 7th District map that once was harpooned in a contest in the Washington Post. Looking for a name for what they were acclaiming as one of the worst examples of partisan powers at play in redistricting, the Washington Post selected this winner in a contest for the 7th: “Goofy kicking Donald Duck.”

There is a word for this nonsense. It is called “gerrymandering.” It means using politics to create a distinct advantage to one political party – the one in charge.

It means the fix is in before voters ever enter their voting booths; it means the deck is stacked to keep incumbents in power and creates an unfair playing field for challengers.

But there is a glimmer of hope. Two state senators are proposing much-needed changes in the redistricting process.

Senate Bill 22 would take the job out of the grubby mitts of the Legislature and instead create an independent 11-member commission, consisting of four members from each of the major Republican and Democratic parties, and three not affiliated with any party.

The bill is bipartisan, sponsored by Democrat Sen. Lisa Boscola, of Northampton, and Republican Sen. Mario Scavello, from Monroe.

They want to take the process out of human hands and instead rely on modern technology and software to interpret the census results in accurately and fairly reshaping districts.

The Congressional map goes to a vote of the full state House and Senate. The state Legislature districts are controlled by the Legislative Reapportionment Commission. That panel is made up of the four House and Senate caucus leaders, two from each party, and a fifth member who is usually a legal expert.

“It’s time to take the stakeholders out of the redistricting process and turn it over to the people,” Boscola said. “We can’t fix how we’re governed until we fix how we choose who governs us.”

Wise use of words there, senator.

Too often that’s the problem. The whole system appears “fixed.”

We endorse this clear step forward in deciding how legislative and congressional districts are drawn. It’s long overdue.