Obama announces new effort in fight against gerrymandering
Former President Barack Obama on Monday announced a new initiative that will help volunteers influence redistricting efforts in states across the country.
Redistricting U, an extension of the All On The Line campaign, will send trainers to provide free training and tools to volunteers about their state redistricting process, gather feedback on ways to improve their communities and teach them how to be leaders in the fair map movement, according to the initiative’s website.
All On The Line, launched earlier this year, is a combination of Obama’s Organizing For Action and former Attorney General Eric Holder’s National Redistricting Action Fund.
Obama said in a statement he has always believed “training is at the heart of organizing.”
“It’s why I made it a priority in my 2008 campaign and throughout our larger movement for change in the years since,” Obama said in a statement on the group’s website.
He added, “The movement for fair maps will determine the course of progress on every issue we care about for the next decade. And we can’t wait to begin organizing when the redistricting process starts in 2021. We need to build this movement from the ground up — right now.”
The new initiative is the latest effort by Obama to push for voting reform and fight against gerrymandering. The Obamas have long pushed for increased voter participation and fought against partisan gerrymandering. Ahead of the 2018 midterm election, former first lady Michelle Obama launched her When We All Vote initiative and traveled to various cities pushing for increased voter turnout.
