Gerrymandering has a long history in US politics

Gerrymandering is proliferating in states across the U.S. Republicans and Democrats alike have been redrawing voting districts for the U.S. House to try to give their party an advantage.

The term “gerrymander” originated over 200 years ago to describe the political manipulation of boundaries for legislative voting districts.

It was coined in 1812 to describe a district signed into law by Massachusetts Gov. Elbridge Gerry that critics said was shaped like a salamander.

Gerrymandering has continued since then.

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled in 2019 that federal courts don’t have the authority to decide challenges to alleged partisan gerrymandering.