West Virginia State Senate
Below you'll find my alternative to the West Virginia State Senate district map. What you’ll notice is that compared to the actual map, my districts look neater. Compactness is taken into account in drawing these maps, but it’s not the top priority. My version displays a better way of keeping together communities of interest, while respecting political and geographical boundaries. Using Dave’s Redistricting App, some of the actual districts couldn’t be drawn to match exactly, however, these discrepancies have no major effect on their respective district demographics. The district numbering keeps to the previous numbering as closely as possible
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Mid-Ohio Valley 1, 2, 3
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The only change with the 1st district comes in Marshall County, where my version keeps the edges of the district closer to the county's northern border. Otherwise, this R+17 district was drawn pretty well. The 2nd moves a bit to the right, from R+24 to R+26. While mostly the same, my 2nd loses parts of Marion and Monongalia counties, gaining all of Gilmer County, and picking up Lewis and Pleasants counties. The 3rd district nudges to the left from R+23 to R+22. The only change made is the loss of Lewis County to the 2nd, making up for that loss by gaining the rest of Roane County.
Metro Valley 4, 5, 7, 8, 17
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The 4th district is mostly the same, being an R+23 district that voted for McCain by 20%. My version splits no counties losing the western part of Roane County for all of Putnam County, keeping Jackson and Mason counties. The 5th district is virtually the same combining a part of Wayne County with Cabell County, and it has an R+13 PVI. The 7th district changes a bit more than the others. It loses Boone County, but gains all of Mingo County and more of Wayne County. It also moves slightly to the right from R+26 to R+27. The 8th district remains an R+11 district that only barely voted for McCain, but went for Romney by a solid margin. However, my version keeps the district in Kanawha County. mostly north of the Kanawha River. The 17th moves a bit to the right from R+11 to R+12, but it also voted for Obama in 2008 before voting for Romney by a solid margin. The district loses a lot of territory in Kanawha County, but picks up Boone County.
New River Valley 6, 10
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The 6th district actually remains mostly the same even though it looks very different. My version loses the parts along the Kentucky border in Mingo and Wayne counties, keeps Mercer County, and gains all of McDowell County, as well as Wyoming County. This district moves slightly to the right from R+27 to R+28. The 10th district keeps Monroe and Summers counties, but loses Fayette and Greenbrier counties while gaining Raleigh County. The district moves considerably to the right from R+20 to R+26.
Mountains 9, 12, 13, 14
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The 9th is a completely revamped district. Located north of the actual 9th, my version of the district is comprised of: Braxton, Clay, Fayette, Nicholas, and Webster counties. My 9th moves to the left considerably from R+28 to R+21, and only voted for McCain by about 3%, but swung drastically to the right in 2012, voting for Romney by about 27%. The 12th district undergoes a lot of change, as well. The only piece that's the same in both versions is Harrison County. It makes up for the loss of Braxton, Clay, and Lewis counties, along with part of Gilmer County, by taking most of Marion County. The district moves to the left going from R+20 to R+16. My 13th takes all of Monongalia County and a small part of Marion County, mostly east of the Monongahela River. It moves slightly to the right from R+7 to R+9, but it still voted for Obama in 2008. The 14th moves slightly to the right from R+25 to R+27, but remains mostly the same. It no longer goes into Monongalia County, but takes more of Mineral County and all of Grant County, while keeping Barbour, Hardy, Preston, Taylor, and Tucker counties.
Potomac Highlands 11, 15, 16
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The 11th district undergoes a bit of change both geographically and politically. While the district keeps Pendleton, Pocahontas, Randolph, and Upshur counties, it loses part of Grant County, as well as Nicholas and Webster counties, and it gains Greenbrier County. The district's PVI moves leftward from R+25 to R+22. The 15th and 16th districts remain mostly the same. The 15th barely moves from R+26 to R+25, due to small changes in Berkeley County, which it shares with the 16th. My version keeps Hampshire and Morgan counties, along with part of Mineral County. The 16th's PVI moves from R+9 to R+8 and it still voted for Obama in 2008. Again, this is due to small changes made in Berkeley County, which the district shares with the 15th. Jefferson County makes up most of the 16th district's population.
My version of the West Virginia State Senate district map improves cohesion of communities of interest while also respecting geographical and political boundaries. This is why the districts appear compact, but more importantly why the overall map is appropriate. The actual map was drawn by Democrats, but in a state that has raced towards Republicans in recent years, Democrats wouldn’t be favored to win a majority. Even in my version, which may have been better for Democrats a few years ago, Republicans can expect large majorities in the years ahead. Thanks for reading!
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The maps were created using Dave’s Redistricting App: gardow.com/…
The charts and data were assembled using spreadsheets via Stephen Wolf’s guide: www.dailykos.com/…
The Statistical Atlas was used to match the district numbering: statisticalatlas.com/…
Google Images aided in determining the regional breakdown
Links to the Virginia Maps
Alternative Districts: Virginia State Senate
Alternative Districts: Virginia State House of Delegates