Cracking

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Redistricting
State-by-state
redistricting procedures
Majority-minority districts
Congressional district demographics
United States census,
2020

In redistricting, cracking refers to the practice of drawing electoral districts that divide the population of a community or constituency across several districts. In doing so, the influence of the community or constituency may be reduced, preventing the group from forming a voting block within any single district sufficient to elect the group's preferred candidates. This practice contrasts with packing, in which the population of a community or constituency is consolidated within a small number of districts, thereby minimizing its influence in other districts. Cracking and packing may be used in conjunction to minimize the influence of a particular voting bloc to benefit another, a practice referred to as gerrymandering.[1][2][3]

## See also[edit]

* Packing
* Majority-minority districts
* Gerrymandering
* State-by-state redistricting procedures

## External links[edit]

* National Conference of State Legislatures, "Redistricting"

## Footnotes[edit]

1. ↑ All About Redistricting, "Where are the lines drawn?" accessed June 21, 2017
2. ↑ Congressional Research Service, "Congressional Redistricting: An Overview," November 21, 2012
3. ↑ National Conference of State Legislatures, "The Redistricting Glossary," December 21, 2015

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