What is Districting?
There is a separate topic area - see Boundary Delimitation - dealing in depth with districting issues. This file gives
an overview of the operational arrangements of the electoral manager. Districting or delimitation
is the process for determining the way in which constituency or electoral area boundaries are
drawn. It can deal with the division of the country into constituencies, districts or areas; or it can
continue so that every aspect of the allocation of electors to areas and polling sites is covered.
The type of electoral system used will determine how crucial districting is to the result of the
election. Where a national election is being contested on a national proportional representation
system (where every elector in the country is exercising their vote on the same ballot paper and
the national percentage of votes determines the proportion of seats the party wins), the effect
districting will have on the result is minimal. However, where a first past the post system is used,
variations in the size of constituencies can have a major influence on the result.
When Does It Happen?
The electoral law often prescribes when the districting work will be carried out, either by
reference to reviews at prescribed time intervals - say 5 or 10 years - or before every major
election.
Variances in elector numbers are more important than the passage of time. When major changes
in population take place because of, for example, migration or the construction of large numbers
of new dwellings, then a review is desirable; otherwise the value of the vote in one area can be
greater than that of another.
The Australian system has both a time element (at least every seven years) and other elements
that activate when the deviation of voter enrolment is different from the average by a prescribed
amount.
Who Carries Out the Districting Work?
The law will also prescribe where the responsibility for districting lays. It can be an entirely
separate process from the work carried out by the electoral manager. For example, a separate
electoral boundary commission may be charged with the role of reviewing boundaries and given
criteria, or the work may be carried out by the same electoral commission which is dealing with
other electoral processes. Either way the electoral law or regulations will set out criteria and
often the appropriate body or organisation publishes its proposals in provisional form to give all
interested parties an opportunity to make representations.
Discretion of Electoral Manager
It is unlikely the electoral manager will have significant discretion in terms of districting issues,
particularly when districting can affect the result. The manager may well, however, have
considerable discretion in terms of districting within an electoral area. This means that, where a
contest is taking place within an area, it is left to the electoral manager to decide how many
districts that area will be divided into for polling purposes. For example, the electoral area could
be one of 30 square miles with six candidates contesting the election; thus, whilst all the electors
within the area will have the same choice of candidates, the way the districting is carried out will
have a significant effect on how convenient it is for the average voter to get to the polling site.
Electoral laws often specify a maximum number of electors at any polling site and also in some
cases a maximum distance any elector should be required to travel. Where the electoral manager
has any discretion, it is essential that the same criteria for districting be applied across the whole
of the electoral area, so as to ensure that no candidate or party has any advantage or disadvantage
because of districting. It is highly desirable that the electoral manager makes known to the
interested parties the criteria to be used and gives an opportunity for representations to be made.
Lack of infrastructure, such as public transportation and roads, is a crucial factor in emerging
democracies that should be taken fully into account.
Criteria and Information.
In the absence of specific criteria within the electoral law the electoral manager should decide
what is appropriate given the national and local circumstances. There are no simple guidelines,
other than to be fair and consistent. What is needed, however, is accurate information about the
electorate. Where there is an accurate and up-to-date voter registration system, the districting
decisions can be made using this system and by taking into account demographic trends and any
other appropriate issues. If the voter registration data is not reliable then it may be necessary to
get other information from censuses or other record sources, such as those of births and deaths or
in extreme cases from relief agencies. Some information is better than none, and the higher the
quality of the information available, the less likely it will be that the districting process will be
criticised.
Key Issues
Every vote must have an equal value - that is the primary issue in districting. The electoral
manager must ensure that the way the districting work is carried out does not give any advantage
to any candidate or party. Of course, some minor variations are inevitable. No two districts will
be absolutely identical, but any significant alteration in the value of an individual vote should be
avoided.
A departure which takes into account topography, population paucity or the like can sometimes
be justified but only if there are very exceptional circumstances in one particular area which are
not replicated elsewhere.
Registration of voters means collecting a lot of basic data. It is a process which lends itself to
automation, and there are many computer packages available to make the task of collecting,
storing and amending data simple and inexpensive.
