Shawn GriffithsRoll Call reported Tuesday on efforts by both major parties to secure an election win in Texas' 23rd Congressional District, the only competitive district in the state. This is not a new development. The border district has been the only competitive congressional district in Texas for years, switching often between Republican and Democratic representatives depending on what type of election year it is.
Roll Call reports:
10 seats rated as TossupsRothenberg & Gonzales Political ReportrematchPete GallegoWill HurdurgedBen Ray Lujántop target for Democrats an initial member of its Patriot Program
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That's right. Only 10 congressional seats are considered competitive in 2016, out of 435 total seats in the U.S. House. That's a little over 2 percent of the total seats. Two percent!Presidential election years historically have much higher voter turnouts than midterm election years, and many are hoping for a major resurgence in voter participation after the record-low turnout in 2014.
However, even with the boost in voter participation, tens of millions of voters will have little say in who ends up representing them. With the number of "battleground states" at an estimated 7 or 8, the Republican and Democratic parties will focus almost exclusively on this small handful of districts and states while ignoring the rest of the national electorate.
After decades of partisan gerrymandering and the creation of election laws that give two private corporations lasting dominance in the electoral process, voters are justified in believing that their voice doesn't matter because elections in much of the country put political parties first -- not voters.
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