THE LEAGUE OF WOMEN VOTERS
OF NORTH DAKOTA
PO Box 295, Fargo, ND 58107

Reapportionment

League Of Women Voters Recommendations On Reapportionment

The League of Women Voters of North Dakota supports legislative reapportionment on the basis of population and recommends retaining the present size of the legislative assembly, currently representing 49 districts. The League believes that it would appropriate to sub-divide geographically large districts so that one representative would be elected from each sub-district while one senator would represent the entire district. State Leagues across the U.S. have studied the apportionment issue since the early sixties. By January 1966 the National League (LWVUS) had reached membership agreement on a position that both houses of state legislatures should be apportioned substantially on population. In 1972 that position was extended to cover all voting districts. Currently Leagues are still working for equitable apportionment and redistricting of all legislative bodies in the belief that population standards provide the fairest and most equitable means of assuring that each vote is of equal value. The use of the term "substantially", as in Supreme Court decisions, allows adequate leeway for any necessary local diversity and to protect minority representation.