Representative Government in Pennsylvania?

After the 2000 Census the Republican Party made no secret of their intention to redraw voting districts in PA in such a way that the Democratic Party would lose up to six seats in the U.S. Congress even though the State was losing only two seats due to reapportionment. The tables below show the result of their use of GIS to warp the principle of representative government which has been the bedrock of our democracy.
Voter Registration By Party
Date Dem Rep Other Total Dem % Rep % Other %
Nov-98 3,514,970 3,072,299 671,553 7,258,822 48.4 42.3 9.3
Nov-00 3,736,304 3,250,764 794,929 7,781,997 48.0 41.8 10.2
Nov-02 3,768,316 3,235,172 832,287 7,835,775 48.1 41.3 10.6
PA Dept of State - Bureau of Commissions, Elections and Legislation (BCEL)

With the percent of Pennsylvanians in each party nearly unchanged, the minority (Republican) party (41% of registered voters) got 63% of the representation in Congress. Were it not for the nearly universal outcry of voters in NE PA and a mere 3% Democratic edge in District 17 the result would have been as predicted and planned by the Republicans and they would now have 74% of the voice in Washington.
Congressional Representation By Party
Years Congress Dem Rep Total Dem % Rep %
1999-2000 106th 11 10 21 52.4 47.6
2001-2002 107th 10 11 21 47.6 52.4
2002-2004 108th 7 12 19 36.8 63.2
 The MAP Center, 2004

The Republicans maintain that the districts are very accurate according to the "one person one vote" principle and they are correct. In fact, the district populations vary by only one in 646,371 persons. This is an amazing feat but it belies the fact that the party picked the voters and not the other way around.
Measuring a Gerrymander
Comparison Maps
The NE PA Story