It's the title of a new book by Harvard Poly Sci professors Daniel Ziblatt and Steven Levitsky. Some interesting points, esp regarding the historical legacy of the electoral college, and the fillibuster as an impediment to electoral reform...
Now for an especially egregious example, let's look at what the GOP minority is trying to do in Wisconsin...
Non partisan evaluators rank Wisconsin as one of the worst examples of political gerrymandering and give recent redistricting efforts by the GOP Legislature there a grade of F. Earlier this year, WI held a special judiciaary election to replace a retiring SC Justice.
One of the primary issues in the campaign was those gerrymandered political maps and the fact that people were voting for Dems statewide and because of severe gerrymandering the GOP in a 50-50 state had achieved a super majority in both houses of the Legislature. People knew that the more liberal candidate (Janet Protasiewicz) would vote the maps illegal, and they voted for her by double digits.
Now the GOP Legislators are threatening to Impeach her (before she ever hears a single case) because she will not recuse herself (and in effect give them victory). However, one of the reasons she was elected in a landslide was to press for fair maps and break the GOP stranglehold. So essentially the minority Republicans are basically trying to retain their power and disenfranchise the majority who voted for her to change things...
I'm aware of gerrymanders from both sides, where the majority limits the political power of the minority. But I'm not aware of a state with a Dem minority using gerrymandering to retain power and impose their minority view on the majority...
Now for an especially egregious example, let's look at what the GOP minority is trying to do in Wisconsin...
Non partisan evaluators rank Wisconsin as one of the worst examples of political gerrymandering and give recent redistricting efforts by the GOP Legislature there a grade of F. Earlier this year, WI held a special judiciaary election to replace a retiring SC Justice.
One of the primary issues in the campaign was those gerrymandered political maps and the fact that people were voting for Dems statewide and because of severe gerrymandering the GOP in a 50-50 state had achieved a super majority in both houses of the Legislature. People knew that the more liberal candidate (Janet Protasiewicz) would vote the maps illegal, and they voted for her by double digits.
Now the GOP Legislators are threatening to Impeach her (before she ever hears a single case) because she will not recuse herself (and in effect give them victory). However, one of the reasons she was elected in a landslide was to press for fair maps and break the GOP stranglehold. So essentially the minority Republicans are basically trying to retain their power and disenfranchise the majority who voted for her to change things...
I'm aware of gerrymanders from both sides, where the majority limits the political power of the minority. But I'm not aware of a state with a Dem minority using gerrymandering to retain power and impose their minority view on the majority...
