gerrymander

Meanings

Verb

• To divide a geographic area into voting districts in such a way as to give an unfair advantage to one party in an election.
• To draw dividing lines for other types of districts in an unintuitive way to favor a particular group or for other perceived gain.

Noun

• The act of gerrymandering.
• A voting district skewed by gerrymandering.

Origin

• (), from the similarity in shape to a salamander of an electoral district created when Gerry was the governor of Massachusetts. , in text likely written by Nathan Hale and Benjamin and John Russell, and accompanying a cartoon by Elkanah Tisdale.