Maryland's 3rd congressional district comprises portions of Baltimore, Howard, Montgomery and Anne Arundel counties, as well as a significant part of the independent city of Baltimore. The district's odd shape is attributed to gerrymandering to favor Democratic candidates following the 2000 and 2010 censuses. In 2012 the district was found to be the third least compact congressional district in the United States and in 2014 The Washington Post called it the nation's second-most gerrymandered district.

This piece is one of the first in Lordy's Gerrymandered Congressional Districts series. At the beginning Lordy wanted to focus on the shapes of the gerrymandered districts, so he eliminated most color. After this piece, he began working with the random number generator to select the colors used in subsequent pieces. Lordy has a close relative who lives in this district.