League of Women Voters Finds New Map Flawed

To the editor of the Austin Chronicle:
   The League of Women Voters of the Austin Area is very concerned about the impact of the recently passed congressional redistricting act on voters in Austin and Travis County. For many years, leagues across the state have said that the current redistricting process is deeply flawed and that it needs to be fixed. The current process certainly bears this out.
   The league has three criteria against which newly created districts should be measured: compactness, coincidence with boundaries of local political subdivisions, and nondilution of the voting strength of minority populations. While it isn't clear at this point what impact the new districts will have on minority voting strength, the other criteria have clearly not been met.
   We hope that Austin and Travis County voters will work with us in future legislative sessions to find a better way to accomplish redistricting.