{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://cleaver.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/reps-cleaver-ross-pocan-sykes-reintroduce-legislation-end-prison", "Reps. Cleaver, Ross, Pocan, Sykes Reintroduce Legislation to End Prison Gerrymandering", "2026-02-06", "2026", "2026-02", "Democrat", "House", "MO", "Emanuel Cleaver", "C001061", "cleaver.house.gov", "cleaver", "https://cleaver.house.gov/media-center/press-releases", "scraper", "(Washington, D.C.) \u2013 This week, U.S. Representatives Emanuel Cleaver, II (D-MO), Deborah Ross (D-NC), Mark Pocan (D-WI), and Emilia Sykes (D-OH) reintroduced the End Prison Gerrymandering Act. The legislation will help ensure equal representation for all by requiring the Census Bureau to count incarcerated people at their last place of residence rather than the prison in which they are held at the time of the Census.\n\nEvery ten years when the Census is conducted, incarcerated people are counted as residents of the places where they are imprisoned rather than the cities and towns they call home. This practice skews the population count and interferes with equal representation in virtually every state. Many states, including Missouri, have redistricting processes that use prison gerrymandering to give disproportionate representation to rural voters at the expense of voters in urban areas and communities of color.\n\n\u201cThe practice of prison gerrymandering puts the interests of partisan politicians above the wishes of our communities, using incarcerated Americans as unwilling pawns in the process,\u201d said Congressman Cleaver. \u201cThe American people are sick and tired of partisan trickery that undermines the voice of voters, and I\u2019m proud to join Representatives Ross, Sykes, and Pocan to introduce the End Prison Gerrymandering Act to outlaw this damaging practice once and for all.\u201d\n\n\u201cNorth Carolina has a long history of manipulating voters\u2019 places of residence to produce maps that benefit the party in power, including through prison gerrymandering,\u201d said Congresswoman Ross. \u201cAcross the country, we are witnessing unprecedented attempts to rollback voting rights and dilute voters\u2019 voices, particularly voters of color. Now more than ever, we need maps that are fair and ensure every voter can participate fully in our democracy. I\u2019m proud to lead my colleagues introducing legislation that will end prison gerrymandering at the federal level.\u201d\n\n\u201cNearly no one would consider the facility in which they\u2019re incarcerated home,\u201d said Rep. Pocan. \u201cThe current Prison Gerrymandering practice is wrong, giving undue power to certain regions of the country and to elected officials who do not value their concerns. We must end this practice and count people from where they came and most likely will return to once their sentences are finished. I thank Congresswoman Ross for her leadership on this issue.\u201d\n\n\u201cAll Americans have a constitutional right to equal representation in their government. That\u2019s why I am proud to co-sponsor the End Prison Gerrymandering Act, which will ensure incarcerated people are fairly counted in the places they call home, in communities where they have ties, family, and friends,\u201d said Rep. Sykes. \u201cThis legislation will allow fair and accurate representation for all communities\u2014rural, urban, and suburban\u2014 to create a stronger, more representative democracy.\u201d\n\nThe End Prison Gerrymandering Act is cosponsored by Representatives Chris Deluzio (D-PA), Don Beyer (D-VA), Summer Lee (D-PA), Bonnie Watson Coleman (D-NJ), Chuy Garc\u00eda (D-IL), Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC), and Madeleine Dean (D-PA).\n\nOfficial text of the End Prison Gerrymandering Act is available here.\n\nEmanuel Cleaver, II is the U.S. Representative for Missouri's Fifth Congressional District, which includes Kansas City, Independence, Lee's Summit, Raytown, Grandview, Sugar Creek, Greenwood, Blue Springs, North Kansas City, Gladstone, and Claycomo. He is a member of the exclusive House Financial Services Committee and Ranking Member of the House Subcommittee on Housing and Insurance.", 1, "2026-04-04T05:28:40Z", "2026-04-04T05:30:10Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://cleaver.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/reps-cleaver-ross-pocan-sykes-reintroduce-legislation-end-prison"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.0202620178461075, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}