As several states redraw congressional maps ahead of the 2026 midterms, new research shows the United States takes a uniquely political approach to drawing legislative districts compared with most other democracies.
A Pew Research Center analysis found that the U.S. is one of only two democracies where single-member legislative districts are drawn mainly by state legislatures. The other is the Federated States of Micronesia, a small Pacific nation with about 100,000 residents that was once administered by the United States.
The study examined how 107 democracies elect their national legislatures. In the U.S., single-member districts dominate elections for Congress and state legislatures, meaning one lawmaker represents a specific geographic area. Only 21 percent of the democracies studied rely entirely on that system.
Many other countries use multimember districts or elect lawmakers at large nationwide. In fact, 52 of the 107 democracies rely primarily or exclusively on multimember districts, while 13 elect all lawmakers through national at-large voting.
Why district type matters
Single-member districts often pair with “first past the post” voting, where the candidate with the most votes wins, even without a majority. Pew found that 39 of the 42 democracies that mainly use single-member districts rely on that system, including the U.S.
Because of that structure, how lines are drawn can strongly influence election outcomes. Single-member districts also face higher risk of gerrymandering, where boundaries are adjusted to favor one party or group.
Multimember districts usually connect to proportional representation systems. Those systems allow countries to respond to population changes by adjusting how many lawmakers a district elects instead of redrawing boundaries. Voters also tend to choose parties rather than individual candidates, which reduces the impact of district lines.
Who draws the lines
In the U.S., most states give legislatures primary control over redistricting. Pew found that 25 states rely solely on lawmakers to draw congressional maps, while nine use commissions and 10 share the work between legislatures and commissions.
That approach differs sharply from other democracies. In more than two-thirds of countries that rely heavily on single-member districts, independent commissions or national election agencies draw the lines. Lawmakers often play little or no direct role.
The United Kingdom uses independent boundary commissions that review parliamentary districts every eight years. Canada, New Zealand, and Mexico rely on similar independent bodies to redraw districts.
Only eight of the 42 countries that heavily use single-member districts let national legislatures set boundaries by law. Of those, just two — the United States and Micronesia — give that authority to states rather than national bodies.
The Pew Research Center said the current wave of voluntary midcycle redistricting in the U.S. highlights how unusual the American system is compared with other democracies around the world.
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