Snake Pits and Synthetic Leadership: How Power Plays Undermine Representation

The views expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of ASPA as an organization.

By Troy Chavez
August 25, 2025

At 30, I haven’t seen a full life, but I’ve researched, questioned, and appreciated what came before me and what could lie ahead if we work together under common cause. Yet, as a public administrator, it feels like the opposite occurs.

This isn’t a political question. It’s an organizational one.

For a public administrative institution, how can we serve the public when our initiatives juxtapose the community’s needs and priorities? This is a major conundrum for proper governance.

Let’s look at a few things: public sentiment and polling on gerrymandering, the Chevron Deference case, and how political leaders are using government wrongly and against public aims.

Gerry and Mander Slither into a Texas Bar….

In Texas, a brazen mid-decade redistricting effort is seen as a “power grab” by the White House. While gerrymandering is not new, doing so ahead of the midterms cries foul.

A Navigator Research poll (August 2025) on Texas Republicans’ mid-decade redistricting plan found that 33% label it a “power grab—Republicans rigging the system to hold onto power.”

Redistricting efforts are branching out to other states like Democrat-led California and Illinois and Republican-led Florida and Ohio. It’s a silent arms race that again is not solely a political issue.

In this framing, public administrators are affected heavily. Once these lines are redrawn and representation is removed, who will enforce regulations and laws in favor of those they represented? Institutions once understood to be favorable toward those communities may absolve once new leadership deems them “inefficient” for “budgetary reasons.”

….And Reminisced About Their Time in North Carolina

There are historical precedents to fear this. North Carolina maps drawn for the decade 2010 to 2020 caused confusion across government institutions.

In 2011, North Carolina districts in Wake, Mecklenburg, and Guilford Counties were contorted into “snake-like” areas. This disrupted services, and clear legislative agendas became awash in graying objectives. How do you prioritize dollars when hands are covered with gloves?

During the 2010s, teacher vacancies in CMS and Guilford consistently outpaced state averages, an upward trend omnipresent in more than 7,000 statewide vacancies by fall 2024, including over 500 in Charlotte-Mecklenburg alone. Public administrative leaders were left puzzling over differing policy angles and directives while managing chronic vacancies and staffing needs.

This also happened in healthcare and with Medicaid.

Urban districts tied in with rural districts receive wonky focus and lacking authoritative budgeting, leaving hospitals and county agencies strapped for cash. This delayed Medicaid expansion until December 2023, when roughly 600,000 residents enrolled. Upon final arrival, approximately 600,000 residents enrolled in the first year, including 340,000 in Mecklenburg, 217,000 in Wake, and 182,000 in Guilford, overwhelming administrators with a sudden implementation surge that could have been phased in years earlier.

Within these elongated political battles the wins and losses are machinated by few, felt by everyone, resulting in loss of service effectiveness and focus. The enrapt attention on power grabbing was a cutting of the American people’s organs. How can we breathe with our hearts and pump blood with our lungs?

Chevy is Wrong about Ron….

The Chevron Supreme Court case (1984) established judicial deference to agency expertise in interpreting ambiguous statutes but was repealed by Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo in June 2024.

There are arguments for both sides, which say stronger congressional control establishes more power in the people, but if congressional maps no longer represent the people, we may find improper deference.

This coincides with mounting institutional distrust in the courts and support for experts in their respective fields.

….And Scared of the Mailman

In a 2024 Gallup poll taken in December, only 35% of Americans expressed confidence in the U.S. judicial system and courts—a record low, marking a 24-point drop since 2020.

In the same year, in November, Pew Research Center found that 76% of Americans said they have “a great deal” or “a fair amount” of confidence in scientists to act in the public’s best interests. These scientists are public health administrators. They understand their field and should be trusted, not wholesale, but even government-weary Ronald Reagan would want us to trust first prior to verifying.

While political officers have a duty to the people, they have only a shallow understanding of the means and ways to how. A man can be seen on the street to be dying, but only a doctor, paramedic, or trained professional can save them. Do you choose the man who got help or the one capable of helping?

The answer can be both. We can choose representatives who understand our needs while entrusting professionals to facilitate those needs. But when to step aside and when to step forward is the real challenge for politicians and public officials.

Nevertheless, this battle for power will only hurt everyday Americans who rely on these everyday services. Public administrators should be aware of these changes and be conciliatory when asked and readily accessible when information is needed in boardrooms, public briefings, news conferences, etc.

This is how government can be representative: by empowering the people as torch bearers who know the way. This role must be harnessed by steady-handed public administrators for the preservation of democracy and true representation.

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Author: Troy Chavez, M.P.A. is a PhD candidate at Liberty University with a masters in public administration and works in government doing community relations. He can be reached at [email protected].

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