Is it even possible to Gerrymander Massachusetts?

[Cyrus Alimonte]

We all know Massachusetts is the birthplace of Gerrymandering with Former Massachusetts Governor and former Vice President, Elbridge Gerry. But as of the 2024 election, is it even possible to Gerrymander it?
Both Senate seats and all House seats are in the Democrats favor, and we all know that the Republicans have a snowballs chance in hell in getting any federal seats in Massachusetts(the State GOP hardly has any seats).
But in the Gerrymander craze happening in our Country(looking at you, Texas and California) would it be possible for the Democratic party to Gerrymander any seats?
(Photos are of the Congressional districts in Massachusetts and the way each town went in the 2024 election.)

 

[Gatsby]

We all know Massachusetts is the birthplace of Gerrymandering with Former Massachusetts Governor and former Vice President, Elbridge Gerry. But as of the 2024 election, is it even possible to Gerrymander it?
Both Senate seats and all House seats are in the Democrats favor, and we all know that the Republicans have a snowballs chance in hell in getting any federal seats in Massachusetts(the State GOP hardly has any seats).
But in the Gerrymander craze happening in our Country(looking at you, Texas and California) would it be possible for the Democratic party to Gerrymander any seats?
(Photos are of the Congressional districts in Massachusetts and the way each town went in the 2024 election.)

Democrats already control all of those House seats, so no, by definition it's impossible for them to improve on that performance.

If Republicans controlled redistricting, they might be able to squeeze one red seat out of the middle/south part of the state. Maybe.

 

[Greenbeard]

Maybe we can get Republicans to -1 or -2 seats if we really try.

 

[Anagram]

No, because they already have all the seats. It's actually somewhat hard to make a seat that would be comfortably won by Republicans if you try gerrymandering the other way because of how spread the Democratic support in the state is (they've won every county in each election since 1992).

It's possible to make a seat that Trump won by mid-single digits in 2024 or two seats that he just barely won that year, but almost impossible to make anything close to a reasonable seat that Trump would have won in 2020. I don't see how you can make a Republican seat that would actually be a comfortable Republican win.

 

[Cyrus Alimonte]

No, because they already have all the seats. It's actually somewhat hard to make a seat that would be comfortably won by Republicans if you try gerrymandering the other way because of how spread the Democratic support in the state is (they've won every county in each election since 1992).

It's possible to make a seat that Trump won by mid-single digits in 2024 or two seats that he just barely won that year, but almost impossible to make anything close to a reasonable seat that Trump would have won in 2020. I don't see how you can make a Republican seat that would actually be a comfortable Republican win.

Trump preformed surprisingly well for a Republican candidate in Massachusetts this year. He nearly won Bristol County. And in order to get a Republican Congressional district in Massachusetts, that would require extremely skilled Gerrymandering that would make Mr.Gerry blush

 

[noonereal]

Is it even possible to Gerrymander Massachusetts?

Pretty much the entire state is educated so no.

 

[Integrityrespec]

We all know Massachusetts is the birthplace of Gerrymandering with Former Massachusetts Governor and former Vice President, Elbridge Gerry. But as of the 2024 election, is it even possible to Gerrymander it?
Both Senate seats and all House seats are in the Democrats favor, and we all know that the Republicans have a snowballs chance in hell in getting any federal seats in Massachusetts(the State GOP hardly has any seats).
But in the Gerrymander craze happening in our Country(looking at you, Texas and California) would it be possible for the Democratic party to Gerrymander any seats?
(Photos are of the Congressional districts in Massachusetts and the way each town went in the 2024 election.)

Hey, let's go! The numbers show that if all states stack it as much as they can the Republicans will wind up gaining 8 total seats so let's have this fight. A better fight would the left find a decent candidate, abandon the far left crazy policies, get tough on crime, and work to regain the middle class and black voters who have been leaving. No, that's not important. Just waging war on anything Trump is what they want. What has that gotten? 2 of 3 losses in the elections, and a nation that as bad as the democrats claim Trump is, believes the democrat party to be even worse. It take real guts to straighten out a failure and right now its a failure and they keep doing what they have been doing for since 2016. Crazy?

 

[natman]

I voted no. It's already been gerrymandered as far as it can go.

 

[GIJane]

They'll do it just on General Principle.

 

[Greenbeard]

I voted no. It's already been gerrymandered as far as it can go.

A contorted gerrymander would be the only way to eke out a GOP district here.

 

[Linc]

A contorted gerrymander would be the only way to eke out a GOP district here.

‘They’ will be cracking Kansas City now.

 

[coyote505]

We all know Massachusetts is the birthplace of Gerrymandering with Former Massachusetts Governor and former Vice President, Elbridge Gerry. But as of the 2024 election, is it even possible to Gerrymander it?
Both Senate seats and all House seats are in the Democrats favor, and we all know that the Republicans have a snowballs chance in hell in getting any federal seats in Massachusetts(the State GOP hardly has any seats).
But in the Gerrymander craze happening in our Country(looking at you, Texas and California) would it be possible for the Democratic party to Gerrymander any seats?
(Photos are of the Congressional districts in Massachusetts and the way each town went in the 2024 election.)

New Mexico is another state which has been Gerrymandered to 100% Dem.

 

[natman]

A contorted gerrymander would be the only way to eke out a GOP district here.

Hardly. Comparing how MA counties voted in the 2024 presidential election to the current districts it seems a convoluted gerrymander is what you have now. Note the dogleg on District 1 that neatly divides the western groups of red counties in two and the similar divide between Districts 4 and 9. It's no coincidence that MA has 0 Republican Representatives.


Here's a map of of the congressional districts:

 

[Anagram]

Hardly. Comparing how MA counties voted in the 2024 presidential election to the current districts it seems a convoluted gerrymander is what you have now. Note the dogleg on District 1 that neatly divides the western groups of red counties in two and the similar divide between Districts 4 and 9. It's no coincidence that MA has 0 Republican Representatives.
View attachment 67586892

Here's a map of of the congressional districts:

View attachment 67586893

I’m while it is with a doubt true that Democrats designed these districts to be as forgiving for their own party, it is not as easy to make Republican districts as you think. Play around with it on DRA if you think otherwise.

Most of those Republican areas (which are not counties) have few people. Every actual county in the state has voted Democratic for 32 years.

It certainly is possible to make at least one Republican district if you try for it, but you really have to be trying to do it. If you create their districts without attempting to create Democratic ones or Republican ones either way, you are almost certainly going to come up all Democrats.

 

[Greenbeard]

Hardly. Comparing how MA counties voted in the 2024 presidential election to the current districts it seems a convoluted gerrymander is what you have now. Note the dogleg on District 1 that neatly divides the western groups of red counties in two and the similar divide between Districts 4 and 9.

There are no red counties in Massachusetts, I think you're a little confused.

 

[reinaert]

Mass routinely elects Republican governors. It launched Brown and Romney. What its voters reject is culture wars and neo-confederacy.

 

[natman]

I’m while it is with a doubt true that Democrats designed these districts to be as forgiving for their own party, it is not as easy to make Republican districts as you think. Play around with it on DRA if you think otherwise.

Most of those Republican areas (which are not counties) have few people. Every actual county in the state has voted Democratic for 32 years.

It certainly is possible to make at least one Republican district if you try for it, but you really have to be trying to do it. If you create their districts without attempting to create Democratic ones or Republican ones either way, you are almost certainly going to come up all Democrats.

There are no red counties in Massachusetts, I think you're a little confused.

The map wasn't labelled and it turns out the areas in the first map are towns, not the counties I mistakenly thought they were. My bad.

That said, there are still areas of Republican voters in MA, and the current Congressional districting divides them up and spreads them out, which results in zero Republican Representatives.