The End of Majority Rule?
Making America Elite Again
This week, the President publicly stated that he wants one or more states to further Gerrymander their districts in an effort to remove more Democrats from the House of Representatives. This was a fairly remarkable statement for a sitting President to make, perhaps the first time one has done so publicly. Why is it remarkable? Because Gerrymandering is and has been almost universally unpopular and of course what he’s talking about is taking away Americans’ right to representation.
But he said a “very simple redrawing” could yield five additional seats for the GOP in the Lone Star State. “I think we’ll get five,” Trump said. “And there could be some other states we’re going to get another three, or four or five in addition. Texas would be the biggest one.”
Here in Ohio, Gerrymandering has led to a GOP supermajority in both Houses as well as the US Congress that completely distorts the electorate. Despite years of court battles and multiple attempts at referendums, (many with deliberately confusing titles and language designed to trick people into thinking that pro-Gerrymandering issues are in fact anti-Gerrymandering) we’re still stuck with something less than Democracy.
According to the state auditor’s calculations, the new GOP-drawn maps give Republicans an advantage in 61 of 99 — or about 62% — of Ohio House districts, and in 23 of 33 — or roughly 70% — of state Senate districts. Ohio’s political breakdown has been calculated at roughly 54% Republican, 46% Democratic.
Background
This nation began as a fairly elite experiment; only ‘landed’ white males over a certain age could actually participate in it. The United States was envisioned as a Democracy as opposed to a Monarchy, but it was structured as a Democratic Republic with a slew of balancing acts built-in to make sure that it didn’t get too Democratic. That’s where we started in the late 1780’s, but things have changed quite a bit over the years, including the following Constitutional changes:
Slaves were freed and given the rights of citizens as part of the 13th, 14th and 15th Amendments to the Constitution.
Senators were elected by popular vote as a result of the 17th Amendment.
Women were given the vote by the 19th Amendment.
18 year old’s were given the vote by the 26th Amendment (before this 21 was the most common minimum age, but each state had the right to set their own standard).
All of these changes, along with a larger number of associated laws, (such as the Voting Rights Act), have moved us closer and closer to an true Majority Rule scenario. We are still of course in a Republic, (as opposed to a true Athenian-style Democracy), but the rules regarding who can participate in that Republic have become increasingly more progressive for nearly 200 years. There are some important caveats and roadblocks to keep in mind though that have kept such progress from being as open as most people would like it to be; two in particular are Gerrymandering and the Electoral College. The first roadblock impacts the Legislative Branch and the latter dictates how we elect our Chief Executive. The effect of both tends to be similar though; each limits or overwrites the ability of the majority to fairly choose its representatives within our Republic.
The Political Satire in “The Dictator” cuts straight to the bone, and of course highlights the contest between Minority and Majority Rule.
This has been a longstanding battle in American politics going back to the founders and then Jackson’s struggle against the perceived elites. It morphed into the multi-decade conflict between North and South as the minority in the latter tried desperately to expand slavery into new territories to maintain their control over the Federal government. When they thought that they had lost that battle, (with the election from Northern states only of Abe Lincoln), it led to the Civil War as they tried to leave the union. The South reimposed aspects of minority rule again though as Reconstruction wound down in the 1870’s and this eventually led to Jim Crow laws and the exclusion of African Americans from all political life for nearly 100 years in most Southern states (despite what was in the 13th, 14th and 15th Amendments).
Why does this Struggle Matter?
So, what’s the big deal with Majority Rule anyway? This is an issue that has confused folks on both sides for quite some time. While there is one side that has definitely dedicated themselves to ensure that Majority Rule never happens; the other side isn’t always on the same page about it either. I recall very distinctly debating this with Progressive Democrats locally some years back and when I was trying to make my case for why Majority Rule was key to having a functional Republic, they kept returning to the tyranny of the majority argument. What does that mean?
Well, this argument highlights all of the injustices imposed by majority groups within the electorate on minority groups. It also alludes to the many arguments Madison made (in the Federalist Papers) during the great debates during the framing the Constitution. While these all seem like valid points at first glance, they fall apart quickly with just a little bit of scrutiny. The main problem with it is this - that in our 250 year history of minority oppression, it wasn’t actually the majority doing it. In other words, by successfully excluding minority groups from exercising their power and other similar techniques (such as Gerrymandering) a minority of elites gained the ability to impose their will onto the majority.
The implications of this are clear. When a small, powerful clique is able to control the machinery of power and disregard the will of most of the people living in a nation, then it is much more likely that harm will be done to the various subgroups within that disempowered majority. All Authoritarian regimes are in fact instances of Minority Rule, (including the Monarchy that we separated ourselves from in 1776).
While the battle has long raged between those few who would control us all and the little guy forever, this year things have definitely taken a turn for the worse. The full power of the federal government is now being directed towards tilting the system even more in the favor a minority elite by excluding ever more Americans from the voting process. And this brings us to the core reason why Gerrymandering is so unpopular and why our history up until now has been one continuous move towards greater empowerment through expanded Democratic participation - the American people believe that Freedom is our birthright and the best way to exercise it is through free and fair elections. Donald Trump may not believe in this, but the vast majority of the rest of us do. And the majority is what this country is all about.
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