The district:
Louisiana's gerrymandered 5th Congressional District.
Who represents LA-05?
Republican Ralph Abraham. On Monday, he backed up President Trump's xenophobic attacks against Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Ayanna Pressley, Ilhan Omar, and Rashida Tlaib:
It's an embarrassing defense of racism that should make us ask: How has our political system incentivized representatives to defend extreme rhetoric like the president's terrible comments?
Gerrymandering has perpetuated a system where Abraham can score political points from hateful tweets -- and if we want to get extreme representatives like him out of office, we need fair maps. Support All On The Line today by adopting LA-05 for a small monthly donation.
How did Louisiana get a representative like this?
In 2011, the year state maps were redrawn for this entire decade, Louisiana Republicans held a "trifecta." They controlled the state House, the state Senate, and the governor's mansion.
They divided the state for maximum Republican gain, shoehorning together Louisiana's two biggest cities and Democratic strongholds -- New Orleans and Baton Rouge -- into the same district: LA-02. By doing so, they manipulated the maps so that the remaining five districts would all rate as "usually Republican," according to FiveThirtyEight. As a result, a Republican running in LA-05 has a 99.0% chance of winning.
Abraham did just that in 2014, winning the general election in LA-05 easily.
What does that mean for the people of LA-05?
A politician like Ralph Abraham knows he doesn't have to worry about how his rhetoric would affect his chances at re-election. He doesn't need to find common ground or listen to his constituents. In fact, he's probably far more concerned by a primary challenger to his right than a general election challenger.
That's a big reason why he panders to the extreme with comments like his tweet from Monday. It's also why he supports far-right positions like these:
- Repealing Obamacare, which would strip millions of affordable health care
- Curbing Medicaid expansion in states that desperately need it
- Going against common-sense gun safety measures, like universal background checks
All On The Line is fighting to un-rig districts like LA-05 nationwide. Adopt LA-05 with a small monthly donation today to support our work:
If you've saved your payment information with ActBlue Express, your donation will go through immediately:
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Team All On The Line
All On The Line is the grassroots advocacy campaign supported by the National Redistricting Action Fund.
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Brazilian-American Chamber of Commerce • 485 Madison Avenue, Suite 401, New York, New York 10022, United States •
We're at a critical moment in the fight for fair maps. The Supreme Court decision refusing to block partisan gerrymandering undermines voting rights and the core democratic principle that voters should be able to pick their elected officials.
Let me be very clear. In spite of the troubling Supreme Court ruling, our fight continues. All On The Line is focused on building a grassroots army of organizers, activists, donors, and voters who understand why map manipulation is a threat to our democracy and are ready to give power back to the people in their states.
We have teams on the ground organizing across the country, but it takes resources to make sure they have the tools to bring fairness to our democracy. Will you support our work at this turning point for our movement and make a donation to All On the Line?
Just because the Supreme Court says the Republicans can gerrymander doesn't mean the people of this country have to live with that decision. But we need concerned citizens to join us. Nothing worth having comes easy.
Thank you for your commitment to this fight,
Eric Holder
82nd Attorney General of the United States
We're at a critical moment in the fight for fair maps. The Supreme Court decision refusing to block partisan gerrymandering undermines voting rights and the core democratic principle that voters should be able to pick their elected officials.
Let me be very clear. In spite of the troubling Supreme Court ruling, our fight continues. All On The Line is focused on building a grassroots army of organizers, activists, donors, and voters who understand why map manipulation is a threat to our democracy and are ready to give power back to the people in their states.
We have teams on the ground organizing across the country, but it takes resources to make sure they have the tools to bring fairness to our democracy. Will you support our work at this turning point for our movement and make a donation to All On the Line?
If you've saved your payment information with ActBlue Express, your donation will go through immediately.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Just because the Supreme Court says the Republicans can gerrymander doesn't mean the people of this country have to live with that decision. But we need concerned citizens to join us. Nothing worth having comes easy.
Thank you for your commitment to this fight,
Eric Holder
82nd Attorney General of the United States
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