New polls show strong support for redistricting reform

“Nationwide, over 8 in 10 Americans (82%) prefer that congressional districts be drawn by nonpartisan commissions rather than the party in power in each state… . “The finding is a striking instance of political maneuvering falling out of sync with the opinions of Americans.”

A smaller national survey by nonpartisan YouGov found “Large majorities of Americans say gerrymandering is a major problem, unfair, and should be illegal.”

Among top findings in the YouGov survey:

• Majorities of Americans in all age groups say that gerrymandering is a major problem.
• Attitudes differ little by age.
• More than 70% of all major age groups consider gerrymandering a major problem.
• Concern has increased most since 2022 among younger adults.

Polls in other states echo these results and show growing voter frustration.

In North Carolina, voters of all parties oppose gerrymandering.About 84% of voters, including 87% of Democrats and 78% of Republicans, said they oppose partisan voting maps in the September survey commissioned by Common Cause North Carolina and conducted by Opinion Diagnostics, a Republican-leaning polling firm.

Similar polls in Florida, Indiana, and other states echo the same sentiment Fair Districts PA volunteers heard in red, blue and purple regions of Pennsylvania:

What about California’s vote on Proposition 50?

While proponents of the current tit-for-tat redistricting battle may point to the outcome of the Proposition 50 vote in California, that vote was promoted as a referendum on President Trump’s attempt to capture control of Congress, rather than a referendum on independent commissions.

The referendum title included “Authorizes Temporary Changes to Congressional District Maps in Response to Texas’ Partisan Redistricting” and the “pro” statement in Official Voter Information Guide began “Proposition 50—The Election Rigging Response Act—approves temporary, emergency congressional district maps to counter Donald Trump’s scheme to rig next year’s congressional election and reaffirms California’s commitment to independent, nonpartisan redistricting after the next census. Vote Yes on 50 for democracy in all 50 states.”

Vote YES ads focused on response to Donald Trump, partisan gerrymandering elsewhere, and the need to defend democracy, rather than on the redistricting process itself.

It’s also worth noting how much was spent on both Yes and No campaigns. The Vote Yes campaign outspent the Vote NO campaign by about 3 to 1: with almost 123 million spent on Vote Yes and about 4.5 million spent on Vote No.

The Vote No outcome was not an endorsement of partisan redistricting in California; rather, it was a resounding objection to partisan redistricting elsewhere, with a promise to return to commission-drawn maps in the future. In one exit poll, 92% of voters who responded said future districts should be drawn by an independent commission. If Prop 50 had ended the Independent Redistricting Commission permanently, the results likely would have been quite different.

Despite the success of California’s Prop 50, multiple polls make voter sentiment clear: except in response to gerrymandering elsewhere, few voters approve of rigged district maps. An overwhelming majority believe we would all be better served by maps drawn to reflect voters and hold elected officials accountable and are looking for leaders who help make that happen.

Polls mentioned above:

NBC News national survey, September 7, 2025
YouGov survey, August 8, 2025
Common Cause North Carolina, October 2, 2025

Voters Support Redistricting Reform: downloadable, print-at-home document to share with your own state legislators (or share the link to this web update)