The reform group Prison Policy Initiative (PPI) has reignited calls for West Virginia to address prison gerrymandering, a redistricting practice that counts incarcerated people as residents of prison locations rather than their home communities. This approach, used during the last redistricting cycle, disproportionately skews representation in districts that house correctional facilities. According to the PPI, some legislative districts in the state have prison populations making up as much as 18% of their total count, meaning those districts have significantly fewer actual residents with voting power compared to others. Reform advocates argue that this violates the foundational democratic principle of equal representation by granting more influence to districts with fewer constituents.
PPI also highlighted the racial and geographic inequities of the practice. Black West Virginians, who are incarcerated at higher rates, are more likely to be removed from their home communities and counted elsewhere, weakening political power in the districts they come from. While a growing number of states and localities have adopted reforms to count incarcerated individuals at their last known residence, West Virginia has not yet taken action. With the 2030 Census on the horizon, the report urges state lawmakers to adopt legislation correcting this distortion, noting that model policies and national momentum make reform both practical and achievable. Read the article at publicnewsservice.org.
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