Barack Obama Launches ‘Redistricting U’ Campaign for ‘Fair Maps’

Former President Barack Obama on Monday unveiled a new initiative to influence redistricting efforts across the United States.

The initiative, Redistricting U, will send activists to provide free training and tools to volunteers involved in redistricting efforts and guide groups on how to “be leaders in the movement for fair maps.”

“Training is at the heart of organizing. It’s why I’ve always made it a priority – from my 2008 campaign until now,” Obama wrote in a tweet announcing Redistricting U, which is part of the All On The Line campaign.

In February, Obama’s Organizing For Action and former Attorney General Eric Holder’s National Redistricting Action Fund joined forces to create the All On The Line campaign — aimed at thwarting the use of so-called gerrymandering across the country.

Training is at the heart of organizing. It’s why I’ve always made it a priority – from my 2008 campaign until now. And it’s why I’m proud to announce @allontheline’s in-person training initiative, Redistricting U. Join us: https://t.co/yrWJ50wSdE pic.twitter.com/HiKvGd2XyE

— Barack Obama (@BarackObama) August 26, 2019

“The movement for fair maps will determine the course of progress on every issue we care about for the next decade,” Obama said. “And we can’t wait to begin organizing when the redistricting process starts in 2021. We need to build this movement from the ground up – right now.”

“The movement for fair maps will determine the course of progress on every issue we care about for the next decade. And we can’t wait to begin organizing when the redistricting process starts in 2021. We need to build this movement from the ground up — right now,” Obama said in a statement on the initiative’s website.

“It’s why I made it a priority in my 2008 campaign and throughout our larger movement for change in the years since,” the former president added.

The initiative is part of a larger push by the Obamas for voting reform. In 2018, former first lady Michelle Obama created the When We All Vote initiative aimed at increasing voter turnout across the country.