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Political redistricting is messy business.
Politicians, it seems, inherently resort to gerrymandering to protect their personal interests. The party in power typically seeks to strengthen its hold on the political system, while the minority party generally cries "foul." And when the tables are reversed, you can bet the same thing occurs.
When left to highly partisan elected officials, the process of redrawing political boundaries is bound to result in the protection of political turf.
We saw it in Utah following the 2000 Census, when the GOP majority drew curious lines in a blatant effort to strengthen the Republican hold on Utah politics. And we've seen it again in recent weeks, though not as blatantly, with the ill-fated scramble to get Utah a fourth seat in Congress. We'll undoubtedly see it again in a few years when political boundaries once again will be officially redrawn following the 2010 Census.
All of which underscores what KSL has said before. It is time reapportionment be taken out of the hands of partisan, incumbent politicians and given to some form of independent redistricting commission. We have only to look to our neighboring states of Idaho and Arizona for excellent examples of how it can be done.
