Once again, politicians are choosing their voters

Once again, politicians are trying to choose their voters to guarantee their own victories before the first ballot is cast.

- Maresa Strano, Tribune News Service

In the latest round of redistricting wars, Texas Republicans are attempting a rare mid-decade redistricting to boost their advantage ahead of the 2026 midterms, and Democratic governors in California and New York are signaling they're ready to “fight fire with fire” with their own partisan gerrymanders.

It's a tempting strategy. But gerrymanders for a good short-term cause are still unfair to voters, and this tit-for-tat constitutional hardball is just another stop on the longer road to democratic collapse. If party leaders insist on running from competition, then it’s time for voters to run toward it. And in many states, the best tool available to do that is the citizen-led ballot initiative — a way for ordinary people to demand fair representation when legislators won't deliver it.