What does a low compactness score mean?

A low quantitative compactness score can serve as a useful indicator that a particular district shape is irregular, and this may point to a gerrymander at work. But a non-compact district might not have been gerrymandered at all. No mathematical technique—such as the generation of a compactness score—is likely to adequately correct for all of the geographical and social variability that can result in irregular district shapes.

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