PORTLAND (AP) — The combination of gerrymandering and geography that helped Republicans build an advantage in many states after the 2010 Census has been largely absent in Maine.

Maine Democrats and Republicans were mostly happy with a reapportionment that left the current congressional districts mostly intact. The Maine Legislature gave overwhelming, bipartisan passage to a plan to reapportion House and Senate district lines.

Redistricting produced dramatic changes in other states.

The Associated Press used a new mathematical formula called the “efficiency gap” to measure whether gerrymandering — drawing political districts in ways that favor their own interests — has helped a political party enlarge its power.

The AP analyzed the results of all 435 U.S. House races and about 4,700 state House and Assembly seats up for election last year and found a decided advantage for Republicans in numerous states.

In Maine, there was only a slight advantage to Republicans in legislative races. In fact, Maine ranked in bottom 10 states where redistricting created a negligible effect in legislative races.

Redistricting was largely bipartisan in Maine.

Republicans initially tried to redraw the lines to divide Maine’s two congressional districts into an east-west configuration instead of north-south. But in the end, Maine’s districts remained much the same as they had been even as gerrymandering produced odd-shaped districts in other states.

Cooperation carried over to legislative redistricting. The two parties were able to negotiate legislative district maps without going to court.

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