gerrymander

/ˈd͡ʒɛɹiˌmændə/

gerrymander means the act of gerrymandering.

gerrymander is pronounced /ˈd͡ʒɛɹiˌmændə/.

Why “gerrymander” is a great word

To manipulate the boundaries of an electoral constituency to give one party or class an unfair advantage, or the resulting oddly-shaped district. The term is a portmanteau of the surname of Governor Elbridge Gerry (1744–1814) of Massachusetts and 'salamander,' coined in 1812 after a redistricting plan created a district resembling a salamander, which was satirized in a political cartoon. Unlike “redistrict,” a neutral, administrative act, or “apportion,” the lawful allocation of seats, to gerrymander is an act of political alchemy, transmuting geography into power. It is the serpentine district that slithers across counties to connect friendly voters, the surgical excision of a hostile neighborhood, the inkwell spilled over parchment in a smoke-filled room—the quiet warping of democracy’s face in the mirror.

noun

The act of gerrymandering.
A voting district skewed by gerrymandering.e.g.“Any citizen looking at a map of district 12 could immediately tell that it was a gerrymander because of the ridiculous way it cut across four counties while carving up neighborhoods in half.”

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.e.g.“The superintendent helped gerrymander the school district lines in order to keep the children of the wealthy gated community in the better school all the way across town.”
To change the franchise or voting system in such a way as to give an unfair advantage to one party in an election.e.g.“[The Reform Bill's] main purpose will be so to gerrymander the electorate as to give the greatest possible assistance to the Radical party at the next election.”
To deliberately bring in voters of one's own party or displace voters of another party from a voting district in such a way as to give an unfair advantage to one party in an election.

Words closest in meaning

By meaning, not spelling — each word's AI semantic fingerprint, nearest first.

disenfranchise 80% match — To deprive someone of a franchise, generally of the right to vote. vs gerrymander →
demarcate 78% match — To mark the limits or boundaries of something; to delimit. vs gerrymander →
redlining 78% match — The process of or an instance of redlining. vs gerrymander →
kingmake 78% match — To use one's influence to help someone else into a position of political power. vs gerrymander →
chicanery 77% match — Deception by the use of trickery, quibbling, or subterfuge. vs gerrymander →
enfranchise 77% match — To grant the franchise to an entity, specifically:; To grant the privilege of voting to a person or group of people. vs gerrymander →
mudslinging 77% match — Casting aspersions with intent to discredit. vs gerrymander →
constitution 77% match — The act, or process of setting something up, or establishing something; the composition or structure of such a thing; its makeup. vs gerrymander →