[EM] redistricting

[Forest Simmons]

Date: Fri, 07 Jan 2005 15:07:16 -0800
From: Mike <mrouse1 at mrouse.com>
Subject: Re: [EM] Deterministic Districting

Mike wrote ...

Well, it's not really deterministic (in the sense that the results are
repeatable), but one could could put the districting maps on the ballot
along with the candidate. Each candidate could provide their own
districting map (or use their party's map), and have the voters decide
which one they liked the best. They could then use that map in the
election to count the votes for various offices.


Forest replies ...

Yes, let the candidates (and any others who want to) submit their favorite 
redistricting proposal, and then choose from among them, not by voting, 
but by applying some objective standard of compactness ... minimal total 
number of traffic lanes cut by the boundaries, minimal total boundary 
length in some appropriate metric, minimal average distance between 
members of the same district where the distance is some combination of 
cost, time, and taxicab mileage, etc.


Forest