Redistricting will change Congress — and potentially our lives — for the next 10 years.

• State legislatures — state House and Senate (31 states)
• Advisory commissions — a mix of state legislators and non-lawmakers (5 states)
• Independent commissions — non-lawmakers selected by a third party (4 states)
• Political appointee commissions — party loyalists selected by elected officials (4 states)

• Both chambers of the state legislature must pass one of the maps introduced by the commission or legislators.
• If an agreement is reached, the governor in some cases has final approval. If the governor vetoes the map, the process starts over or goes to the court.
• If the map fails to pass the legislature multiple times, the state supreme court intervenes and creates its own map.

Source: The Cook Political Report

REDISTRICTING IS NOT A NON-PARTISAN PROCESS. Republicans control the vast majority of states' redistricting. Even in cases where the state constitution calls for an independent commission, Republican legislators can reject the proposed maps and draw their own.

What's at stake?

... EVERYTHING

• Republicans control the redrawing of 187 districts.
• Democrats will only control the redrawing of 75 districts.
• Republicans could pick up 6 to 13 seats in the House —enough to retake the House in 2022— through their control of the redistricting process in Georgia, Florida, North Carolina, and Texas alone.
• Don't count on the Supreme Court for help. A 2013 case struck down portions of the Voting Rights Act: states with a record of voter suppression no longer need the Justice Department to approve their maps.

What does this mean for JAC candidates?

They need our help.

DONATE

• Every state is different, but the maps won't be finalized until late in the election cycle.
• Candidates will not know for a while where the boundaries of their district lie, which can put them at a fundraising disadvantage.
• Several JAC candidates are targets of the GOP who will put our candidates into unfavorable, redder districts. It will be difficult for a Democratic candidate to win in those districts.
• Republicans can potentially cement their majority in Congress for the next decade.

• Gerrymandering: establishing a political advantage for a particular party or group by manipulating the boundaries of electoral districts
• Cracking: diluting the voting power of the opposing party's supporters (or a racial or ethnic minority) across many districts
• Packing: concentrating the opposing party (or a racial or ethnic minority) into one district to reduce their voting power in other districts

• The GOP could net 6-13 house seats by gerrymandering in just 4 southern states.
• The Judiciary plays a large role in determining what's permissible in redistricting.
• Minority majority districts can give marginalized groups more voting power, but they can also prevent them from having sway outside a singular seat.

Joint Action Committee for Political Affairs (JACPAC) is a pro-Israel PAC with a domestic agenda. We support a strong U.S.-Israel relationship and advocate for reproductive health and the separation of religion and state and incorporate other issues of importance to the Jewish community, including gun violence prevention and climate change. In addition to providing financial support for U.S. Senate and House campaigns, JACPAC educates our membership with outreach events designed to inform and activate their participation in the political process.