Josh Goodman is a former staff writer for GOVERNING..
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In Alaska, a Vote on a Larger Legislature
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Remember how rural Alaska legislators were worried that redistricting would make their absurdly large legislative districts even larger and were pushing to expand the size of the Alaska legislature to maintain somewhat smaller districts?
The rural legislators won an initial victory. From the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner:
JUNEAU - The state Legislature has voted to expand both chambers by 10 percent, by adding another two and four Senate and House seats, respectively. The vote comes as the state sees increasing signs of a population shift from rural areas to bigger cities. It also precedes a coming shift in legislative district boundaries to match population estimates from the latest federal census, which is ongoing.
The tougher test, though, will be the state's voters. Rural legislators have a pretty good case to make in favor their proposal. Their districts are so large that it's almost impossible to see many of their constituents on a regular or even occasional basis. Still, most voters may instinctively think that the fewer politicians, the better.
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