WASHINGTON, April 22 (UPI) -- The movement of blacks from U.S. cities to the suburbs is a Republican opportunity to create more safe congressional districts, experts say.
In many metropolitan areas, inner suburbs must be added to urban districts that have lost population, The Washington Post said Thursday. The most likely effect is to remove Democrats from swing districts, making them safe for Republican candidates.
A 1982 amendment to the Voting Rights Act encourages the creation of majority minority districts. Since blacks are the most reliable Democratic voters of any ethnic group, doing that can remove Democratic support.
"The practical effect is great for the GOP," Dave Wasserman of the Cook Political Report told the Post. "In state after state, it's allowing Republicans to pack more heavily Democratic close-in suburbs into urban black districts to make surrounding districts more Republican."
The Republican electoral groundswell in 2010 gave the party control of more state legislatures and governorships, and thus of the redistricting process.
