Congressional district

Congressional district

There are currently 243 congressional districts in the Philippines. 43 districts have been newly added due to the creation of new cities and provinces. Many of the congressional districts are allegedly gerrymandered to ensure the elite persistence of select families that form Philippine’s political dynasties.

About Congressional district in brief

Summary Congressional districtCongressional districts are divisions of a larger administrative region that represent the population of a region in the larger congressional body. In the United States, congressional districts were inscribed into the Constitution to ensure representation based on population. Delimitation or redistricting is the process of drawing congressional boundaries and can also refer to the demarcation of voting areas for the purpose of assigning voters to polling places. There are currently 243 congressional districts in the Philippines. Since 1987, 43 districts have been newly added due to the creation of new cities and provinces, sundering from existing provinces, and piecemeal redistricting. This has resulted in unequal representation in districts such as Calacoon City, and Batanes being represented by one legislator each, despite containing populations of 1. 2 million and 17 000 people respectively. Many of the congressional districts are allegedly gerrymandered to ensure the elite persistence of select families that form Philippine’s political dynasties.

This is illustrated by the Marcos family which remained in power from 1987 to 2008 in almost 50 congressional districts, despite term limits. Congressional districts are the regions from which voting representatives are elected to the U.S. House of Representatives. After the decennial census population counts and apportionment of congressional seats, states are required to delineate their own congressional districts for electing members to the House of House. As per Article One of the USA Constitution, each congressional district is expected to be equal in population to all other congressional districts. The boundaries and numbers for the congressional Districts are established by their respective state’s constitution or court orders in the respective state. The Philippines constitution mandates a nationwide reapportionment for legislative districts; however, the legislature has not approved a reapportionments bill since 1987.