One of the country's fastest changing political landscapes is in suburban Atlanta

One of the country's fastest changing political landscapes is in suburban¹ Atlanta

　　Transcript²

　　Georgia state lawmakers usually rubber stamp local redistricting maps. But this year in rapidly diversifying³ Gwinnett County, the GOP is drawing a local map that favors its own candidates.

　　STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

　　Here in the United States, one of the fastest-changing political landscapes is in suburban Atlanta. Gwinnett County's population has become more diverse, and more Democrats⁴ are getting elected to office there. But now state Republicans are getting involved in county redistricting and tossing out new voting district maps. Sam Gringlas of member station WABE reports.

　　SAM GRINGLAS, BYLINE⁶: In 2018, Democrat⁵ Marlene Fosque made history.

　　(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

　　MARLENE FOSQUE: It took 200 years for a person of color, me, to be elected by the Gwinnett citizens as the first Black Gwinnett County district commissioner⁷.

　　GRINGLAS: Two years after Gwinnett elected their first Black county commissioner, voters turned the whole board Democratic, too. All the members were suddenly people of color.

　　(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

　　FOSQUE: So what it says is that the people have changed. Change is not even coming for it; it's already here.

　　GRINGLAS: Typically, local elected officials in Georgia draw their own district maps after the census⁸. The Legislature just rubber stamps them. So it was a surprise to Fosque when Republican lawmakers intervened and drew their own maps for several of Georgia's diversifying counties. In Gwinnett, Republicans redrew the territory Fosque represents. They made the seat whiter and more likely to elect a Republican by packing more voters of color into the other districts. State Representative Sam Park, a Democrat, tried to stop that map.

　　SAM PARK: It really dilutes⁹ the political power of Gwinnett voters of Black, Hispanic and Asian American communities, and it undermines their freedom to ultimately vote for their elected officials of choice.

　　GRINGLAS: We met at a Korean bakery near Park's Gwinnett District, where you can get sesame tapioca bread and passion fruit mochi doughnuts.

　　UNIDENTIFIED PERSON: (Speaking Korean).

　　GRINGLAS: Park became the first Asian American Democrat elected to Georgia's Legislature when he unseated a Republican in 2016. By 2020, this once-Republican county helped propel Joe Biden to victory in the state. Like Georgia, Gwinnett has kept diversifying, racially and politically. Park says that's why the Republican-controlled Legislature stepped in - not just gerrymandering maps for the state House and Congress, but for local offices, too.

　　PARK: When all is said and done - being driven by a lot of fear that is harbored by folks who maybe are concerned that the changing demographics of Gwinnett is now being reflected in elected officials at the state and local level.

　　GRINGLAS: Republican State Representative Bonnie Rich says the voting map drawn¹¹ by GOP lawmakers is more fair.

　　(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

　　BONNIE RICH: My constituents¹² come to me, and they tell me they have no voice and no seat at the table.

　　GRINGLAS: At a hearing, Gwinnett resident Michelle Frost said her support for the Republican-drawn map isn't about race; it's about ensuring perspectives like hers are represented in local government.

　　(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

　　MICHELLE FROST: I feel like I live in an area that is the Crayola box of crayons, the 64 colors. And that's the life I prefer. It's not a conservative-liberal thing; it's a people thing.

　　GRINGLAS: The fact is, Republicans control the Legislature, and the Legislature has the final say on redistricting maps. Still, the Voting Rights Act forbids drawing districts that dilute¹⁰ the voting power of minorities. Here's Michael Li, a redistricting expert at the Brennan Center.

　　MICHAEL LI: Untangling race and politics is one of the hardest things that courts get asked to do, and it's particularly hard in the South where race and politics overlap¹³ to a very large degree.

　　GRINGLAS: Li says Gwinnett County is a microcosm for how Georgia is navigating¹⁴ shifts in demographics and political power.

　　LI: Some of the biggest battles around redistricting this cycle are going to be in the rapidly changing suburbs of the country, particularly the suburbs of the South.

　　GRINGLAS: Georgia Democrats and voting rights groups talked about challenging the new map in court. But the primary is May 24, so candidates like Gwinnett Commissioner Marlene Fosque acknowledge that trying to win in the Republican-drawn districts is their only option to keep their seat at the table.

　　For NPR News, I'm Sam Gringlas, in Duluth, Ga.

1 suburban   

adj.城郊的，在郊区的

参考例句：

• Suburban shopping centers were springing up all over America. 效区的商业中心在美国如雨后春笋般地兴起。
• There's a lot of good things about suburban living.郊区生活是有许多优点。

2 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

3 diversifying   

v.使多样化，多样化( diversify的现在分词 )；进入新的商业领域

参考例句：

• Some publishers are now diversifying into software. 有些出版社目前正兼营软件。 来自辞典例句
• Silverlit is diversifying into new markets, such as Russia and Eastern Europe. Silverlit正在使他们的市场变得多样化，开发新的市场如俄罗斯和东欧国家。 来自互联网

4 democrats   

n.民主主义者，民主人士( democrat的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The Democrats held a pep rally on Capitol Hill yesterday. 民主党昨天在国会山召开了竞选誓师大会。
• The democrats organize a filibuster in the senate. 民主党党员组织了阻挠议事。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 democrat   

n.民主主义者，民主人士；民主党党员

参考例句：

• The Democrat and the Public criticized each other.民主党人和共和党人互相攻击。
• About two years later,he was defeated by Democrat Jimmy Carter.大约两年后，他被民主党人杰米卡特击败。

6 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

7 commissioner   

n.（政府厅、局、处等部门）专员，长官，委员

参考例句：

• The commissioner has issued a warrant for her arrest.专员发出了对她的逮捕令。
• He was tapped for police commissioner.他被任命为警务处长。

8 census   

n.(官方的)人口调查，人口普查

参考例句：

• A census of population is taken every ten years.人口普查每10年进行一次。
• The census is taken one time every four years in our country.我国每四年一次人口普查。

9 dilutes   

稀释，冲淡( dilute的第三人称单数 )； 削弱，使降低效果

参考例句：

• On the plus side, wind dilutes and scatters air pollutants, and carries pollen. 从好处来说，风能稀释和驱散空气中的污染物质，传播花粉。
• Ubiquity might not be toxic to authenticity, but it certainly dilutes it. 普遍性或许不至于毒害原真性，但确实会削弱它。

10 dilute   

vt.稀释，冲淡；adj.稀释的，冲淡的

参考例句：

• The water will dilute the wine.水能使酒变淡。
• Zinc displaces the hydrogen of dilute acids.锌置换了稀酸中的氢。

11 drawn   

v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的

参考例句：

• All the characters in the story are drawn from life.故事中的所有人物都取材于生活。
• Her gaze was drawn irresistibly to the scene outside.她的目光禁不住被外面的风景所吸引。

12 constituents   

n.选民( constituent的名词复数 )；成分；构成部分；要素

参考例句：

• She has the full support of her constituents. 她得到本区选民的全力支持。
• Hydrogen and oxygen are the constituents of water. 氢和氧是水的主要成分。 来自《简明英汉词典》

13 overlap   

v.重叠，与…交叠；n.重叠

参考例句：

• The overlap between the jacket and the trousers is not good.夹克和裤子重叠的部分不好看。
• Tiles overlap each other.屋瓦相互叠盖。

14 navigating   

v.给（船舶、飞机等）引航，导航( navigate的现在分词 )；（从海上、空中等）横越；横渡；飞跃

参考例句：

• These can also be very useful when navigating time-based documents, such as video and audio. 它对于和时间有关的文档非常有用，比如视频和音频文档。 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓
• Vehicles slowed to a crawl on city roads, navigating slushy snow. 汽车在市区路上行驶缓慢，穿越泥泞的雪地。 来自互联网