(Thanks to the DLCC for cross-posting this. The 1992 map also shows how detailed the lines got with the advance of computers in map drawing. - promoted by Karl-Thomas Musselman)
[cross-posted at DLCC.org]
Texas residents enjoy one of the most informative and data-laden redistricting websites of any state in America, maintained by the Texas Legislative Council. The site contains detailed descriptions of the redistricting process in Texas; the state and federal requirements for various types of districts; and an interactive "DistrictViewer" capable of comparing actual and proposed maps down to the street level.
But the information we found most interesting was an archive of congressional redistricting plans from Texas statehood until today.
 The maps show Texas' early days as a two-district state (a jarring image for those used to seeing a 32-district congressional powerhouse). There are historical quirks like Texas' temporary 19th Century claim to Greer County, which spent several years with no House representation at all and later became part of Oklahoma.
The archive also clearly demonstrates the impact of Wesberry v. Sanders (1964), which established the redistricting principle that all congressional districts must be approximately equal in population. As was common in many urbanizing Southern states prior to Wesberry, the archive shows that Texas redistricted only once between 1917 and 1957. And the 1965 redistricting plan was the first in which several urban counties were split into more than one congressional district. (The 1957 plan only divided Harris County in half, whereas 5 counties were divided in 1965.)
And of course, there's the infamous DeLay-mander of 2003, the maps for which are more commonly available.
All-in-all, this is a wonderful resource for those interested in political history. If combined with county-level election results, it might be interesting to see how some of these districts voted in presidential elections - recent or otherwise. |
