- by New Deal democrat
A gerrymander acts like a levee. A river in flood stage can be contained within a channel, so long as the water level is less than the height of the levee. Similarly, by packing democrats into relatively few districts, and spreading the remaining, smaller GOP majorities over many, the GOP was able to withstand a 52%-48% numerical voting loss for Congressional seats in 2012 and retain a comfortable majority.
But if the water level from a river in flood exceeds - even slightly - the height of the levee, this is what happens:
Similarly, by taking what would otherwise be 60/40 or 65/35 GOP districts and turning them into a greater number of, say, 55/45 districts, then, should the democratic vote this November be 55.1%, you get the electoral version of the above picture.
