Virginia Politics

Virginia wants to prevent gerrymandering. Can a mathematician help?

By Steve Thompson
Today at 6:00 a.m. EDT

When Virginians voted last year to create a commission to draw the state’s political districts, many hoped to head off the partisanship that has marred previous redistricting efforts.

Gerrymandering — rigging maps to favor a political party or candidate — has long been used by incumbents in Virginia and elsewhere to hold onto or expand political power. Both parties agree it damages the integrity of elections, but the complexities of map drawing make it difficult to prevent.

Now Virginia’s commission is considering an offer of help from someone accustomed to solving complex problems: a mathematician.

Moon Duchin, a math professor at Tufts University who specializes in geometry, has been immersed in redistricting problems since 2016, when she taught a class on voting theory. Duchin figured the field of geometry ought to be able to help. She soon founded the MGGG Redistricting Lab, an effort to apply data science to redistricting.

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By Steve Thompson
Steve Thompson writes about government and politics in Maryland, D.C. and Virginia. Before joining The Washington Post in 2018, he was an investigative reporter for the Dallas Morning News. He started his career as a police reporter at the St. Petersburg Times. Twitter https://twitter.com/stevesthompson