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The Kentucky Redistricting Problem: Mixed-Integer Programming Model: Working Paper Series--03-04

Norman, Susan K. and Camm, Jeffrey D. (2003) The Kentucky Redistricting Problem: Mixed-Integer Programming Model: Working Paper Series--03-04. Working Paper. NAU W.A. Franke College of Business.

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Abstract

The goal of the voter-redistricting problem is to partition a state into districts so that the districts have equal populations, are contiguous and compact. Each state has a different variation of this problem due to different state laws, history in the courts and political climate. There has been increasing pressure to remove the partisanship from this process and make it a more technical issue. We focus on the non-political aspects of this problem as defined in the state of Kentucky after the 1990 census. The goal of this redistricting problem is to minimize the number of times that the counties must be divided subject to equal population districts. We present two variations of a mixed-integer programming model. The performance of these models is tested on 12 problems. The tradeoff between the minimum number of cuts and contiguity is examined. Limitations of the models are described.

Item Type: Monograph (Working Paper)
Publisher’s Statement: Copyright, where appropriate, is held by the author.
ID number or DOI: 03-04
Keywords: Working paper, gerrymandering, drawing political boundaries, computer modeling
Subjects: J Political Science > JK Political institutions (United States)
Q Science > QA Mathematics
NAU Depositing Author Academic Status: Faculty/Staff
Department/Unit: The W.A. Franke College of Business
Date Deposited: 19 Oct 2015 23:58
URI: http://openknowledge.nau.edu/id/eprint/1598

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