The Gerrymandering Game Assignment

Every ten years, the state legislature in each state redraws district maps to make sure that each congressional district has roughly the same size of population. However, drawing district maps can also be used as a political tool, where candidates choose voters rather than voters choosing candidates. To find out about redistricting and gerrymandering, and to complete the class assignment, we’re going to play a game… (go to

Helpful Hints for the Redistricting Game

  • Each congressperson’s house must stay in their district. For example, the purple house needs to stay in the purple district.
  • All the parts of the district need to be touching and connected. For example, you can’t have an island of purple in a yellow district or vice versa. (Corners touching don’t count in this game.)
  • Key terms: (Packing-“packing” strongly partisan areas into a single district; Cracking-spreading out voters of a particular party into several districts)

Mission 1: Population Equity

You will be completing Mission 1 of the The ReDistrcting Game. You will need to choose the advanced game and you can choose whichever political party you prefer. Answer the following questions as you complete the mission.

  1. What does population equity mean? (Hint: population equity is the goal of the game. So what is it that you are trying to accomplish?) Why is it important?
  2. How is population represented on the map?
  3. Other than the size of the population in each district, what characteristics does the map tell you about your population? Why might that be important?
  4. What other factors might mapmakers consider when redistricting>
  5. Click on the 2nd tab (on the left), the feedback tab. What advice does the feedback tab give you before submitting your map?
  6. When your map is submitted for approval, what is the state legislature voting results?
  7. Is your map challenged in court? If so, what are the grounds and what were the results?
  8. Once you click ‘Fast Forward to the Next Election’, a newspaper gives a little bit of analysis about the redistricting. Summarize what the newspaper says.

Mission 2: Partisan Gerrymandering

Your goal in this mission is to try and gerrymander the fictional state of Hamilton for whatever political party you support. You will need to select the advanced game and can choose whatever political party you prefer. Answer the following questions as you complete the mission.

  1. Which was more difficult to achieve-redistricting based on population, or redistricting based on partisanship (political party)? Explain your answer.
  2. Once your map is submitted for approval, what is the state legislature voting results?
  3. Is your map challenged in court? If so, what are the grounds and what were the results?
  4. Once you click ‘Fast Forward to the Next Election’, the newspaper analyzes the redistricting results. In order to achieve three congressional districts that favor your political party, which tactic do you have to use (cracking or packing)? What is it, and what does it do?
  5. Explain, whether or not having legislators draw their own maps is a good or bad thing

EXTRA CREDIT: 5 POINTS ON THE NEXT TEST

Complete any other mission at the advanced level. Print off the form that says you have completed the mission; no pictures on phones.