Just about every government decision these days is coated in a thick sheen of partisanship. Decision makers maneuver carefully to generate outcomes that put their own political “team” in a more advantageous position. So, when an opportunity comes along that will affect every political and policy decision made in the Missouri General Assembly for the next decade, the rabid partisans have their eyes on rigging the game in their favor.
That is why those who are discouraged by the unchecked growth of blind partisanship in our political discourse must seize the once-every-decade process of legislative reapportionment to craft the case for common-sense consensus over constant Democrat versus Republican combat.
As former legislators from both parties who served in the General Assembly for a combined 41 years, we know as well as anyone the distracting political fisticuffs and progress-stalling gridlock birthed by aggressive partisanship. And sadly, the strong possibility exists that the post-census reconfiguring of legislative districts will be driven by hyper-partisanship and result in heightened discord between parties. We believe that is the wrong approach.
Since April, the decennial legislative reapportionment process, through which all of Missouri’s 163 state House and 34 Senate districts are redrawn, has been in the hands of commissions divided equally between Republicans and Democrats. That process ultimately failed to reach resolution, with the partisan commissioners locked immovably into their own ideological safety zones. A process built around partisanship with participants fixated on partisan ends provides little room for compromise.
Fortunately, the reapportionment process has reached a point where party battles can possibly give way to reasonable dialogue and accommodation. Reapportionment now sits in the hands of six judges of the Missouri Court of Appeals. They possess a unique opportunity to reject the overt role of partisanship in the drawing of new districts. It is our hope and belief that these judges will set aside the submissions of partisan commissioners and self-interested incumbents and seek a rational, nonpartisan resolution for reapportionment.
Through the nonpartisan, nonprofit Let Missourians Decide, we have crafted a reapportionment solution grounded in the needs of Missouri voters, not entrenched political interests. When the appellate panel met in Jefferson City on Oct. 13 to hear testimony, we presented an option that is neither Democratic nor Republican. Instead, we proposed a nonpartisan plan that is focused on three key goals.
First, our plan builds districts that give more Missourians a meaningful choice in legislative elections by minimizing the number of districts that are clearly drawn as no-lose propositions for either the Democrat or Republican candidate. More competition breeds more participation and more responsive government.
Second, our plan is not aimed at protecting incumbent legislators from either party. While partisan plans seek to maintain or protect the advantages of their own elected officials, our plan focuses on the needs of voters whom legislators represent.
Third, the Let Missourians Decide plan creates legislative maps that seek to reflect the proud, diverse and robust nature of our democracy. In stark opposition to partisan plans aimed at painting our state through the lens of their peculiar perspectives, our plan will create districts befitting the broad electorate and character of our great state.
But details aside, the most important message we have for the six honorable jurists on the redistricting panel is this: You have a choice. Like most civic battles these days, reapportionment is portrayed as a fight between two polar opposites. But it need not be that way. There is another route that provides leadership for Missourians and comfort for all those who believe there is a place in today’s landscape for consensus. We look forward to traveling that road.
Joan Bray, a Democrat, served 10 years in the Missouri House of Representatives and eight years in the Missouri Senate. Bob Johnson, a Republican, served eight years in the House and 15 years in the Senate, and presently serves on the Lee’s Summit City Council. Both are leaders of Let Missourians Decide, a nonprofit organization dedicated to advocating for fair, competitive legislative districts. They can be reached at info@letmissouriansdecide.org.[[In-content Ad]]
