House Redistricting Plan: At a Glance

Here is a closer look at the state House redistricting proposal

Redrawing Districts: State House members redraw their 122 districts every 10 years using data from the U.S. Census Bureau; the new districts will reflect population shifts and changes over the past decade.

Voting Rights: Changes to state House districts must meet requirements of the Voting Rights Act of 1965; the U.S. Justice Department must approve a redistricting plan that passes the Legislature.

Public Hearings: The joint Legislative Committee on Legislative Reapportionment hosted 12 public hearings on redistricting during August and September 2010; four follow-up hearings took place Feb. 11 and 12 after the U.S. Census Bureau released finial population data.

Ideal Size: Based on Mississippi’s 4.3 percent increase in population over the past 10 years, the “ideal” state House district increased in population from 23,317 people to 24.322 people.

Split Precincts: The House plan would significantly reduce the number of split precincts to 189 out of a total of 1,780 precincts; current House districts have from 449 split precincts out of 2,089 total.

Black Majority: The House plan would increase the number of black majority House districts from 39 today to 44 under the proposal.

Whole Cities: Several cities would have their own state House district, including, for the first time, the city of Madison just north of Jackson.

Whole Counties: Ten counties would have their own House district: Chickasaw, Calhoun, George, Greene, Issaquena, Noxubee, Sharkey, Tippah, Wilkinson and Yalobusha. Five counties have their own district today.

CLICK HERE  to download a pdf version of the state House redistricting map.