West Virginia's Redistricting
Information
West Virginia's Redistricting News
All information below is from early
2001
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West Virginia�s Political Lineup
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Redistricting Deadline None. |
Who�s in Charge of Redistricting? The legislature. The governor has veto power over both congressional and state legislative district plans. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Districting Principles
+ = required - = prohibited |
Public Access No public hearings are scheduled. There is a possibility that proposed plans will be posted on a website. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Political Landscape West Virginia lost one U.S. House seat following the last redistricting cycle. This forced two Democratic incumbents to run against each other in the primaries. In 2001, the state will need to be redrawn significantly because of a major shift in population, with the 2nd congressional district picking up seats at the expense of the 3rd. |
Legal Issues West Virginia's congressional district plan was challenged on equal population grounds in 1992; the overall deviation from equality was 0.09 percent. The plaintiffs alleged that the legislature had no compelling reason for such deviations, but the federal court disagreed. The court found that the population deviations were necessary to preserve the inner cores of previous districts, a legitimate interest. In 1993, the state legislative district plan was challenged in federal court on equal population grounds as well. The court refused to consider the plan's overall population deviation range of 9.97% as preliminary evidence of an equal protection violation. The court found for the defendants. The generally recognized legal threshold is 10%. |
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Irregularly Shaped
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� Center�Charleston, Eastern Panhandle � Democratic incumbent, but swing district � Economically diverse � 96% white; 3% black |
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Contact Information Teresa Bowe Legislative Analyst Office of Legislative Services Room E-132 State Capitol Charleston, WV 25305 304/348-2040 304/347-4825 Fax |
National Committee for an Effective Congress' Redistricting
Resource: West Virginia
-Overview
EMILY's List Congressional Redistricting Report: West
Virginia
-Overview
-West
Virginia Redistricting Chronicle
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