Michael Smith: Redistricting politics, districts are contorted

Every 10 years, U.S. House districts are reapportioned among states, based on the U.S. Census. The states redraw the districts to make them roughly equal in population (to meet "one man, one vote" requirements).

Some states, including Iowa and now California, use bipartisan or nonpartisan commissions to draw the districts. Kansas still leaves that power with the state legislators, who will draw the new districts in early 2012.

Currently, the 4th Congressional District features all of metropolitan Wichita and several nearby rural counties. The 3rd District in the Kansas City area features urban Wyandotte and fast-growing Johnson counties, plus the eastern half of Lawrence. The 2nd District encompasses eastern Kansas outside the Kansas City area, including Manhattan, Topeka, Leavenworth, Pittsburg and western Lawrence. Finally, the 1st District contains most of the state's land area (but no big cities or suburbs), stretching from Emporia all the way to the Colorado state line.

All four districts are represented by Republicans, but the 2nd and 3rd districts also have had Democratic representatives in the past decade. Wichita's 4th District is safer for the GOP, and the "Big First" is one of the most Republican congressional districts in the nation.

What will the new districts look like? Wichita's 4th District is stable and likely to see the least change, just losing a few outlying rural counties. The 1st District has lost population and must gain territory. The 3rd District has grown and most lose territory.

Option No. 1: A "college town shuffle," shifting Manhattan from the 2nd to the 1st and eastern Lawrence from the 3rd to the 2nd, would involve the least redrawing of maps. However, this approach has some political problems.

Manhattan features both Fort Riley and Kansas State University. Will state legislators be willing to move these government-dependent entities out of the district of Rep. Lynn Jenkins, R-Topeka, their reliable advocate?

"Big First" freshman Rep. Tim Huelskamp, R-Fowler, is not as well-liked among the state legislators, and he has less seniority in the U.S. House. Also, Statehouse Republicans may resist the creation of two districts — the 2nd and 3rd — that would only lean Republican and not be "safe seats" for the GOP.

Option No. 2: Move Wyandotte County. It would take contorted gerrymandering to move Kansas' most urban, diverse, Democratic county into the western, red and rural 1st District and keep Manhattan in the 2nd while wrapping the 1st around it. With Kansas City's racial diversity, Voting Rights Act-based lawsuits might be a possibility.

Option No. 3: Anybody got a better idea?

Redistricting politics are as contorted as the resulting districts. After reviewing the options, I cannot help but wonder if a nonpartisan redistricting commission deserves a second look here.

This story was originally published August 7, 2011 at 12:00 AM with the headline "Michael Smith: Redistricting politics, districts are contorted."