My Attempt to Make Fair Districts

[jimrtex]

NEW HAMPSHIRE

The plan: one district encompassing the Boston suburbs, Nashua, Portsmouth, Manchester. One district for the rest. This separates the high population density Bostonian south from the rural, maverick north. It's a logical boundary to separate the urban/suburban from the rural. It also keeps the major metro areas together. It favors a linear boundary over a county boundary, but the line is somewhat near the county boundary anyway.

The map:  

District 1 is a rectangle encompassing Portsmouth, Manchester, and Nashua. It has most of Rockingham and Hillsborough Counties. Rating: Lean R

District 2 is much more rural, has a much lower population density, and has parts of all ten counties. Rating: Likely D

Improvements: I have combined Manchester and Nashua, which is a designated metro area. The current districts do not. In addition, I've done a better job of keeping counties whole, keeping cultural boundaries, and keeping geometric shapes.

New Hampshire has five districts to elect members of the executive council. Perhaps the congressional districts could take two-1/2 districts each.

Executive Council districts.(PDF)

[jimrtex]

RHODE ISLAND
The plan: One district for the Providence area, one for the rest. This is a logical urban-rural divide.

The map:

District 1 follows municipal boundaries, containing Providence, Pawtucket, Cranston, Warwick, and Kent County. Rating: Safe D

District 2 contains everything else - Woonsocket, the coast, and many suburbs. Rating:Lean D

Improvements: I opted to keep the Providence metro area whole. This is more of a style choice, but it does highlight a logical divide. It makes the districts more split on density and connects all of the rural areas, as well.

I wasn't aware that you could get to Washington County from Newport. But is there any sort of relationship between Newport and the area? What if Newport were kept in the blue (eastern) district, and move Warwick to the green district.