One of our projects at CTUP is called “Redraw the Lines.” There are at least eight to 10 counties that are in blue states and are contiguous to another state, that wants to join their red state neighbor. They should be permitted to leave the state they are in if the residents favor the move. This is about citizens‘ right to choose who they want to be governed by.

This is happening in most cases because rural residents of Blue states such as Illinois, Maryland, Colorado, Oregon, and California don’t share the values and ideology of the big blue cities that dominate state politics. They want to merge with more similar states on their border. We know of no blue counties that want to leave red states, but there may be a few.

This movement is not to be taken lightly and is an indication of how misgoverned some states are. To secede from a state would require approval by the legislatures in the two affected states and Congress. There is historical precedent for this.