gerrymander

1 of 2

noun

ger·​ry·​man·​der ˈjer-ē-ˌman-dər 

 also  ˈger-;

originally

ˈger- 

1

: the act or method of gerrymandering

2

: a district or pattern of districts varying greatly in size or population as a result of gerrymandering

three new gerrymanders

gerrymander

2 of 2

verb

gerrymandered; gerrymandering; gerrymanders

transitive verb

1

: to divide or arrange (a territorial unit) into election districts in a way that gives one political party an unfair advantage : to subject to gerrymandering

The government gerrymandered urban districts to create rural majorities.

—Matthew Reiss

2

: to divide or arrange (an area) into political units to give special advantages to one group

gerrymander a school district

Did you know?

Elbridge Gerry was a respected politician in the late 1700s and early 1800s. He signed the Declaration of Independence, served as governor of Massachusetts (1810-1811), and was elected vice president under James Madison. While governor, he tried to change the shape of voting districts to help members of his political party get elected. His system resulted in some very oddly shaped districts, including one (Gerry’s home district) that looked a little like a newt. Upon seeing a map of the bizarre regional divisions, a member of the opposing party drew feet, wings, and a head on Gerry’s district and said “That will do for a salamander!” Another member called out “Gerrymander!” Thus gerrymander became a term for such political schemes.

Examples of gerrymander in a Sentence

Verb

gerrymandering urban districts to give rural voters a majority

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Federal courts had previously tried to correct extreme partisan gerrymanders themselves on equal protection grounds, but the Supreme Court closed that door in the 2019 case Rucho v. Common Cause. —Matt Ford, The New Republic, 14 Sep. 2023

Republican states have declined, and in some states, like Ohio and Florida, where voters approved limits on gerrymanders, Republican lawmakers have flouted them. —David Lauter, Los Angeles Times, 14 July 2023

The Supreme Court on Monday agreed to hear an appeal from South Carolina Republicans who are defending a congressional district that a lower court ruled to be a racial gerrymander. —John Fritze, USA TODAY, 15 May 2023

Headline of the day Court orders new congressional map in New York A Democratic gerrymander in the state backfired last year and helped Republicans retake the U.S House, but a new court order could redo those maps. —Chuck Todd, NBC News, 14 July 2023

After the 2020 census, the state’s judiciary threw out Albany’s redistricting map as a flagrant partisan gerrymander. —The Editorial Board, WSJ, 16 July 2023

The case stemmed from a voting map drawn by North Carolina's Legislature that was initially rejected as a partisan gerrymander in the state’s Supreme Court. —Virginia Chamlee, Peoplemag, 27 June 2023

But the original map of congressional districts approved by the G.O.P. legislature in 2021, and later ruled to be a partisan gerrymander, would probably have given Republicans at least 10 of the state’s 14 seats in the U.S. House of Representatives. —Michael Wines, New York Times, 28 Apr. 2023

Singleton’s lawyers said the splitting of Jefferson County as done since 1992 is an unconstitutional racial gerrymander. —Mike Cason | [e-mail], al, 28 July 2023

Verb

Lawsuits over racially gerrymandered congressional maps in several other states, including Georgia, South Carolina, and Texas, quickly followed the Supreme Court’s landmark Voting Rights Act decision in June. —Gary Fields and Adriana Gomez Licon, BostonGlobe.com, 17 Sep. 2023

This is essentially gerrymandering at the city level, much the way state lawmakers have redrawn legislative maps in many states to secure or expand their control over statehouses. —Soumya Karlamangla, New York Times, 12 Sep. 2023

The voters elected a judge who campaigned according to the existing laws and whose presence threatens to make the state a functioning democracy (there’s a lawsuit about gerrymandering that’s moving up toward the high court). —Michael Tomasky, The New Republic, 8 Sep. 2023

Willis denied the allegations of gerrymandering district boundaries to keep the Chicago school system segregated. —Kori Rumore, Chicago Tribune, 10 Aug. 2023

One of the Republicans’ most effective achievements since 2010 is gerrymandering themselves into legislative supermajorities in states like North Carolina and Wisconsin. —Michael Tomasky, The New Republic, 24 July 2023

Arkansas' Legislature gerrymandered itself to over 60 percent Republican control since 2012. —Mike Scott, Arkansas Online, 11 July 2023

While voting rights advocates celebrated the Supreme Court’s rejection of North Carolina Republicans’ illegally gerrymandered electoral map, the state’s GOP is not tapping the brakes at all on its efforts to subvert democracy and disenfranchise voters. —Prem Thakker, The New Republic, 3 July 2023

The Wisconsin Legislature is one of the most gerrymandered in the country, according to Princeton University’s Gerrymandering Project. —Sarah Varney, NBC News, 22 July 2023

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Word History

Etymology

Noun

Elbridge gerry + salamander; from the shape of an election district formed during Gerry's governorship of Massachusetts

Verb

derivative of gerrrymander entry 1

First Known Use

Noun

1812, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1812, in the meaning defined at sense 1

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Kids Definition

gerrymander

1 of 2 noun

ger·​ry·​man·​der ˌjer-ē-ˈman-dər  ˈjer-ē-ˌman-dər 

 also  ˌger-,

ˈger-

: the act or result of gerrymandering

gerrymander

2 of 2 verb

gerrymandered; gerrymandering

-d(ə-)riŋ

: to divide (as a state) into election districts so as to give one political party an advantage over its opponents

Etymology

Noun

from Elbridge Gerry, former governor of Massachusetts, and salamander; so called from the shape of an election district formed during Gerry's term in office

Legal Definition

gerrymander

1 of 2 noun

ger·​ry·​man·​der ˈjer-ē-ˌman-dər also and originally ˈger-ē- 

1

: the act or method of gerrymandering

2

: a district or pattern of districts varying greatly in size or population as a result of gerrymandering

gerrymander

2 of 2 transitive verb

gerrymandered; gerrymandering

1

: to divide (a territorial unit) into election districts to give one political party an electoral majority in a large number of districts while concentrating the voting strength of the opposition in as few districts as possible

2

: to divide (an area) into political units to give special advantages to one group

gerrymander a school district

Etymology

Noun

Elbridge Gerry (1744–1814) + salamander; from the shape of an election district formed during Gerry's governorship of Massachusetts