Georgia catches redistricting fever

Gerrymandering experts are circling Georgia, one of the nation's newest swing states, to monitor the upcoming special legislative session where state lawmakers will redraw state and congressional political maps based on the recent census data.

• One take, from the Princeton Gerrymandering Project: the map is bad, but not as bad as it could be, and it gives Georgia Republicans an expected advantage.

Driving the news: Late last week, leaders of the GOP-controlled Georgia Senate released the first draft of their proposed political maps. The majority party controls the process, and wants to tilt the scales in their favor — just like Democrats did when they last controlled the Capitol in 2001.

Why it matters: Politics are one of the few contact sports where the players get to redraw the playing field, and the final maps will effectively dictate the balance of power between the two parties for the next decade.

• The special session begins on Nov. 3 and is frustratingly opaque, with activists like Fair Districts Georgia and the Georgia Redistricting Alliance demanding more transparency and opportunities for the public to influence the process.

What they're saying: In the report seen by Axios, the Princeton Gerrymandering Project says two Democratic-controlled districts — the sixth in north metro Atlanta, served by two-term House Rep. Lucy McBath and the second, which Sanford Bishop has represented since the early '90s — appear to be the most competitive.

Editor's note: This story has been updated to correct that House Rep. Lucy McBath is a two-term member of Congress.