Pennsylvania's 'sham electoral process'

A terrific story in today's Philadelphia Bulletin about a state House committee hearing on redistricting of Pennsylvania's Legislative districts, which have been gerrymandered to such a degree that it's nearly impossible to oust incumbent politicians.

Several reform groups testified at the hearing in Philadelphia Thursday.

From the story by Jenny DeHuff:

Dennis Baylor, of the Pennsylvania Accountability Project and former candidate for state Senate, expressed his disgust with the current system, saying it disenfranchises too many voters in the Commonwealth.

"People would rather opt out than participate in a sham electoral process, where government gets to pick you before you get to pick your government," he said.

"Gerrymandering, combined with ballot access barriers, have carved up the body politic in such a way that the duopoly has an absolute stranglehold on the system, and the incumbents' 'district-in' electoral edge is so considerable as to make them invincible.

"In fact, if the citizens of Pennsylvania understood what the General Assembly has done to the body politic through the redistricting process, the outcry would make the pay raise pale by comparison."

Read the full story, "Panel Hears Redistricting Testimony" at the Bulletin's Web site.