No, in your heart you devise injustice, and your hands mete out violence on the earth. – Psalm 58:2

Today's Scripture Reading (August 25, 2025): Psalm 58

Gerrymandering. You have probably heard the term and even know basically what it means, but do you know where the name came from? The name originates from one of the founding fathers of the United States, Elbridge Gerry. Gerry was the Governor of Massachusetts in 1812, and he signed the bill that created the first gerrymandered district. The idea behind gerrymandering is that it is sometimes possible to draw electoral districts in such a way that it benefits one party or the other. The idea is to create one or a few Districts with a high percentage of supporters for one party, and then several moderate districts that favor the other party. The result is that one party can receive most of the seats of an area, without most of the votes. And if they have a majority of votes, they can have an overwhelming majority of seats or, possibly, even all of the seats that are allocated to the region.

Someone noticed that the first artificially manipulated electoral district looked like a salamander, and so a name was born, Gerry from the Governor of Massachusetts, and "mander" from the salamander-like shape the new electoral area resembled; a name was born, gerrymander. That first manipulated district benefited the Democratic-Republican party.

With the use of computers, we have taken gerrymandering to a new height. Political parties can ensure their survival, not with better ideas and policies, but with manipulated borders for electoral districts within any region. It is possible that, in the future, the one who controls the electoral borders is the one who will control the election.

I know my district has been gerrymandered. The district borders seem to be in almost continual flux. The location of my house has bounced between different electoral districts a few times over the years.

Gerrymandering electoral districts is just one of the pieces of evidence that, in the depths of who we are, we like to devise injustice. No one gerrymanders the borders so that an election is fairer. The grand purpose of gerrymandering is to give one party an advantage over another and to devalue each individual vote. It is what makes some believe that the electoral system is inherently unfair. Shouldn't the one who has the most votes win an election? If there are ten house seats involved and the vote is a 60-40 split, then 60% of the ones seated would be from the party with 60% of the vote; in this example, it would mean that the winning party would get six of the ten available seats. The perceived problem with such a system is that it would make the opinions of rural voters have less impact.

Maybe there isn't an easy solution to the problem. However, the real problem begins within us. Our willingness to be involved in efforts like gerrymandering is a result of our desire for injustice over justice, especially if the injustice serves our beliefs, plans, and hopes.

Tomorrow's Scripture Reading: Psalm 61