| "Was there massive fraud or anything? It doesn't look like it." That's the spokesman for a Republican-backed, controversial ballot review in Arizona that, after six months, is wrapping up. Rather than uncover some big conspiracy theory on why President Biden became the first Democrat to win the state in six presidential elections, the audit shows Biden won because more people voted for him. A draft report showed that Biden's win may have actually have been 360 votes larger than the official results, reports The Post's Rosalind S. Helderman. The full report is being released Friday afternoon. From an electoral-integrity standpoint, there was no need for this ballot review, which was widely criticized as being partisan, not secure and amateur. A number of Republican officials in Arizona blasted it.  2020 election results in Arizona are counted by workers for a Florida-based company, Cyber Ninjas, in Phoenix. The GOP-backed audit found no evidence of widespread fraud. (AP Photo/Matt York) | But how much investigating into the 2020 election is enough for Trump supporters? Increasingly, it seems like the investigations are the point. Texas, a state Trump won, is doing an election audit after the former president called for it. Same with Wisconsin and Pennsylvania. There was a small one in Michigan. None that Trump has backed has uncovered anything close to a stolen election. It's easy to see why Republican lawmakers across the country are doing this: Trump demands it. "Texas needs you to act now," Trump said in a recent letter to Texas's governor. But when these audits don't find widespread fraud from 2020 — because there is no evidence of it — what political benefit is there for the Republicans who conducted it? "Will they accept the truth now?" asked the top official in Arizona's Maricopa County, a Republican. Redistricting, visualized Redistricting is one of the most important political stories of the year, but understanding it doesn't come naturally to most people. Unless you're an elected politician, most of us don't live our lives thinking about which state legislative or congressional district we're in. Where the lines are drawn is an important story for two reasons: - It's time for states to redraw their electoral maps based on new census data. This happens every decade, and 2020 census data just came out.
- Republicans can draw themselves into the majority in the House of Representatives for a decade at least, because they control the mapmaking process in key states. Most states delegate this to state lawmakers. Republicans need to flip just five seats across the country to get back the majority in the House of Representatives.
Let's pause and better understand what we mean by "drawing legislative maps." Some states are already out with their proposed maps, and The Post's Harry Stevens has a look at how they'd change representation in Congress. Take Republicans in Indiana, for example. There are currently two Democratic-leaning congressional districts and one swing district. Republicans would redraw the maps so that there are two Democratic-leaning congressional districts, and the rest are all solidly Republican. Maps like these are one of the reasons there are fewer and fewer competitive races in Congress, and more polarized members.  (Harry Stevens / The Washington Post) | Want to see how redistricting works in your state? We have a tool for that. A quote in the news, explained: "We have just expected a whole lot more." "The expectations from Black voters across the country — we have just expected a whole lot more." That's Shelia Huggins, a Democratic National Committee member from North Carolina, to The Post's Sean Sullivan and Tyler Pager.  The U.S. government said it will investigate Border Patrol treatment of Haitian migrants that drew national attention this week. (PAUL RATJE/AFP via Getty Images) | She is echoing many Black Democrats' concerns and even fury at the Biden administration, as there's a widespread feeling that the president recognizes their political value but doesn't have their backs on policy. Recently: - White Border Patrol agents on horseback were seen chasing Black Haitian migrants on the border as the Biden administration ships many of them back home on airplanes rather than let them apply for asylum.
- A police reform deal fell through in Congress, which is probably the last, best chance for a national standard against police brutality in America in the near future.
- Democrats in Congress are stymied on how to pass voting rights legislation to mitigate Republican state laws that outlaw some voting methods used disproportionally by voters of color and those who are low income.
On the first issue, Biden said today that "I take responsibility" for what's happening at the border. On the second two — police reform and voting rights — Biden could push Democrats in Congress to end the filibuster, which would make a world of difference in whether these priorities of the Black community become reality. He has yet to publicly endorse any change to Senate rules. | 
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