Article VI, Clause 3 of the U.S. Constitution states: “no religious Test shall ever be required as a Qualification to any Office or public Trust under the United States.” Yet H.R.1, nicknamed the "Corrupt Politicians Act," clearly states (emphasis added):

An individual is eligible to  serve as a member of an independent redistricting  commission if the individual meets each of the following criteria: . . .

(iv) The reason or reasons the individual desires to serve on the independent redistricting commission, the individual’s qualifications, and information relevant to the ability of the individual to be fair and impartial, including, but not limited to— (I) any involvement with, or financial support of, professional, social, political, religious, or community organizations or causes;

Similarly, S.1, the Senate version of the bill, reads (emphasis added):

(iv) The reason or reasons the individual desires to serve on the independent redistricting commission, the individual’s qualifications, and information relevant to the ability of the individual to be fair and impartial, including— (I) any involvement with, or financial support of, professional, social, political, religious, or community organizations or causes;

As a Family Research Council Blog describes it:

While it may appear minor, this is incredibly problematic because it suggests that religious affiliations may affect an individual’s ability to be impartial, and thereby may make them ineligible to serve on the commission. This is not only discriminatory, but also unconstitutional.

RNLA has frequently blogged on the many problems with The Corrupt Politicians Act on free speech and election administration. Now we can add redistricting to the areas that the Corrupt Politicians Act negatively changes the process of our elections, at best, and violates the Constitution at worst. The Corrupt Politicians Act and all its components must be opposed. 

The Senate version of the legislation will be marked up by the Senate Rules Committee next Tuesday, May 11th at 10:00 a.m. Next week's hearing can be viewed here.