Allan Lichtman: The DeLay Scheme: Blatantly Buying Our Government

DeLay's intervention in Texas state legislative elections was part of a concerted, nationwide Republican plan to control our government through political gerrymandering at the expense of black and Hispanic voters. I have observed this process first-hand as the expert witness, not only in Texas, but also in the court cases challenging Republican congressional redistricting plans in Pennsylvania, Florida, Ohio, and Michigan.

In southwest Texas, DeLay's plan split heavily Hispanic Webb County, removing some 90,000 Hispanics from Congressional District 23 to ensure that it would elect a Republican opposed by Hispanic voters. His plan dismantled seven other congressional districts across Texas in which African-American and Hispanic voters critically influenced election outcomes, submerging these voters into heavily Republican districts in which they have no influence.

DeLay's plan represents the first time, anywhere in America, that majority-minority districts have been dismantled since the Voting Rights Act was passed.

Tags: DeLay, gerrymandering, Texas, GOP