50 states with equal population

 

Advantages of this proposal

 

• Preserves the historic structure and function of the Electoral College.

 

• Ends the over-representation of small states and under-representation of large states in presidential voting and in the US Senate by eliminating small and large states.

 

• Political boundaries more closely follow economic patterns, since many states are more centered on one or two metro areas.

 

• Ends varying representation in the House. Currently, the population of House districts ranges from 528,000 to 924,000. After this reform, every House seat would represent districts of the same size. (Since the current size of the House isn't divisible by 50, the numbers of seats should be increased to 450 or 500.)

 

• States could be redistricted after each census - just like House seats are distributed now.

 

Disadvantages

 

• Some county names are duplicated in new states.

 

• Some local governments would experience a shift in state laws and procedures.

 

Methodology

 

The map began with an algorithm that groups counties based on proximity, urban area, and commuting patterns. The algorithm was seeded with the fifty largest cities. After that, manual changes took into account compact shapes, equal populations, metro areas divided by state lines, and drainage basins. In certain areas, divisions are based on census tract lines.

 

The District of Columbia is included into the state of Washington, with the Mall, major monuments and Federal buildings set off as the seat of the federal government.

 

The capitals of the states are existing states capitals where possible, otherwise large or central cities have been chosen. The suggested names of the new states are taken mainly from geographical features:

 

• mountain ranges or peaks, or caves – Adirondack, Allegheny, Blue Ridge, Chinati, Mammoth, Mesabi, Ozark, Pocono, Rainier, Shasta, Shenandoah and Shiprock

 

• rivers – Atchafalaya, Menominee, Maumee, Nodaway, Sangamon, Scioto, Susquehanna, Trinity and Willimantic

 

• historical or ecological regions – Big Thicket, Firelands and Tidewater

 

• bays, capes, lakes and aquifers – Casco, Tampa Bay, Canaveral, Mendocino, Ogalalla, and Throgs Neck

 

• songs – Gary, Muskogee and Temecula

 

• cities – Atlanta, Chicago, Columbia, Detroit, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, Newark, Philadelphia, Phoenix and Washington

 

• plants – Tule and Yerba Buena

 

• people – King and Orange

 

http://fakeisthenewreal.org/reform/

 

So we can gerrymander the Senate and the House?

i still find it hilarious that they picked Elyria as the capital of "Firelands"

This actually makes me somewhat curious about local geography elsewhere in the country, just wondering where some of these state names come from.  (Do you know da way to Nodaway?)

 

Of course, as an actual proposal, it would never fly, but it's thought-provoking, and that's worth something in itself.

Sohio > Scioto

Chinati is pretty awesome, though. Why does Texas get that name?

Firelands is okay, though I'd prefer something more along the lines of "Erie." ;)

It should be Fireriver. Firelands should be somewhere out west.

Chinati is pretty awesome, though. Why does Texas get that name?

 

yes it is -- i love this whole area, it might be my favorite gerrymander state.

 

its named after the chinati mountains -- and perhaps also a nod to houston oil baron's chinati foundation that funded artist donald judd and his marfa, texas (marfa is the ultimate hipster artist town).

 

its interesting that this region is called la frontera along both sides of the border and has its own culture, music, food, etc. so it would have to include borderland mexico to ideally be true to itself.

 

probably similar situations along the canadian border too.

 

this is a fun map but i would not want state borders to become an ever changing parliment-type situation. can you imagine? where do we live today? canaveral? damn!