Apportionment at Its Best

In Congressional elections representatives are elected to Congress from various districts of each state. There are a total of 435 seats in Congress. The number of districts a state has is dependent on the state's population and the way in which those districts are apportioned varies among states. In order to allocate for the shifting of populations among states and to make the representation in Congress fair, the process of redistricting occurs. Redistricting is a way to redistribute populations by redrawing district boundaries. This happens after each Census is taken.

The state of Minnesota's Constitution states that the responsibility of drawing the district lines is contingent on the state legislature. The Subcommittee on Redistricting comprises four members, two Democrats and two Republicans, who are appointed by the Legislative Coordinating Commission. Presently, Minnesota has eight Congressional districts, however, it is proposed that after the 2010 Census is tallied the number of Congressional districts may decrease to only seven.

The current boundaries of Minnesota's third Congressional district were agreed upon by Minnesota's state legislature in 2002. The district includes many of the most affluent suburbs of Minneapolis as well as various middle class neighborhoods in Hennepin County. Erik Paulsen is a resident of Eden Prairie, Minnesota which is one of the more wealthy cities in the district. If the state were to reapportion its district boundaries who knows how that could affect the representation of the people in the western suburbs.

Current boundaries of Minnesota's 3rd district

 

 2010 State Redistricting Profiles