Date of Award

May 2023

Degree Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science

Department

Mathematics

First Advisor

Gabriella Pinter

Committee Members

Jeb Willenbring, Istvan Lauko

Abstract

Gerrymandering is a plague on modern democracy, blatantly violating the democratic principle of “one person, one vote.” Here we will methodically examine the 2018 Wisconsin state assembly election, and using a metric known as the efficiency gap demonstrate the extent to which gerrymandering played a role. Through this metric, and a probabilistic simulation of our own, we will show that in this election the Republican party benefited from systematic partisan gerrymandering. Additionally, we will use these findings to suggest methods for correcting this undemocratic practice that both parties utilize in order to disenfranchise opposition voters.

Included in

Mathematics Commons

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