Voting Rights Act in flux, new analysis needed

The Supreme Court of the United States recently ruled that the Voting Rights Act of 1965 needs updating. The list of states and jurisdictions that were covered by the VRA was deemed old and obsolete. So, now we need new analysis of where voting rights abuses are happening. Where is registration and turnout skewed indicating a systemic problem? Where are districts distorted by the gerrymandering tactics of cracking and packing? The temporary loss of VRA coverage may be a problem, but right now I'd like to be hopeful and optimistic that if we put some new consideration into this problem we can make things even better in the future.

2013 Actual Maps vs Mine

I have posted all the current district maps according to the Census bureau's data. You can now go to any of my pages on a state's US Congress or state legislature districts and get it my way and their way, with statistics and maps of both. For example: PA Congress

2013 Actual Maps Coming

The Census has released block mapping files for the actual 2013 districts being used for US Congress and state legislatures. I'm working on importing this data, running analysis for demographics and compactness, and rendering maps for comparison to compactness-optimized maps. I hope to have all this processed and deployed in another couple weeks.

whitehouse.gov petition on redistricting and gerrymandering

Hey look, a whitehouse.gov petition. Let's try this thing.
https://petitions.whitehouse.gov/petition/end-gerrymandering-implement-neutral-redistricting/89pRSrrF

Don't put off til 2021 what you could gerrymander today!

Virginia Republicans are attempting a new round of gerrymandering just a couple months after the first election on new maps. Apparently the new maps aren't gerrymandered enough. For bonus points they did this on inauguration day while the news was focused elsewhere and perhaps more importantly while an opposing vote in the state senate was away in Washington DC.

The mid-term redistricting in Texas in 2003 was brazen and offensive but this really takes it to a new level and outrages my cynical heart.

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2013/01/21/1180936/-While-You-Were-Out-Virginia-Senate-Republicans-pull-redistricting-coup?detail=hide

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/01/22/virginia-redistricting-henry-marsh_n_2523818.html

http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2013/01/republicans-dirty-trick-inauguration.php?ref=fpb