What’s all the fuss about redistricting?
The Founders had enough foresight to realize that the country was going to grow and that representation would need to be reevaluated on a regular basis. The Constitution of the United States established the concept of equal representation based on population and mandated that a census of all U.S. residents take place every ten years to determine the basis for that representation.
Last year, 2020, was a census year, and the results will be used to redistribute representation on many levels. This census was especially important to California, because we will lose one of our seats in the House of Representatives—not because we lost population but because we did not gain population at the same rate as some of the other states.
What is your political space?
Political spaces exist on many levels and determine who you can vote for in elections. Some of these spaces are determined by established geopolitical jurisdictions: states, counties, and cities. Others are determined by a process called redistricting.
Elections based on geopolitical jurisdictions that rarely, if ever, change include the following: In the United States, every registered voter can vote for the U.S. president and vice president. Californians can vote for the state’s governor and a number of other officials who preside over state-level departments. Californians can also vote for two U.S. senators.
Geopolitical jurisdictions known as districts are more subject to shifting with the results of the census: The fifty-three, soon to be fifty-two, California members of the U.S. House of Representatives are elected by district, based on population.
What offices are based on population-based districts?
The California Legislature has eighty members in the Assembly and forty members in the Senate. The members of both these houses are elected by district based on population. Each California Senate district contains two adjacent Assembly districts.
The State Board of Equalization oversees property and some other taxes. It consists of four members elected by district and the state controller, elected statewide. Each district should encompass ten senate districts. Most of Los Angeles County is in District 3.
Los Angeles County has five supervisorial districts. Pasadena and the surrounding communities are in District 5. At the county level, we also elect district attorneys, sheriffs, and judges for the county courts. County supervisors provide some services to all of the county and other services only to unincorporated areas, such as Altadena.
Cities are usually governed by city councils and mayors, with most city councils elected by district. For example, Pasadena has seven city districts and is currently conducting redistricting workshops (which can be attended via Zoom) for each district. The first was on June 26 and the last will be on August 5; information is available at the Pasadena city clerk’s Redistricting 2021 web page.
And you live in a school district (which may or may not align with your city) and a community college district. You may live in a library or a water district.
That’s a lot of different political spaces! So how do these spaces get created?
How does redistricting work?
The information collected by the census is divided into small geographical areas called census tracts. Redistricting is the process of combining the tracts into areas of government with equal populations,the overriding qualification for creating districts. However, there are other concerns as well. Keeping communities with common interests together to strengthen their voice in government has emerged as a very serious concern.
California has a Citizens Redistricting Commission of volunteers selected for their diversity that draws the maps for the U.S. House districts, the State Assembly and Senate districts, and the districts for the Board of Equalization. This commission was created to reduce the influence of elected officials in the process. L.A. County has a similar commission.
The California system has become a model for the rest of the country as states struggle with the problem of gerrymandering. Gerrymandering occurs when communities with common interests are divided up in such a way that there is no possibility for them to have a fair share of representation. Sometimes this is based on political party registration, with the goal of giving one party more representatives than the other. Other times it is done to make it impossible for racial or ethnic groups to be represented by someone who looks like them. For instance, let’s say a community of majority-Asian residents were split up, with each part joined to a different majority-white area. Even with no racial bias existing among voters, white persons would have the advantage in an election. That would be an example of the effects of gerrymandering.
In the process of redistricting, understanding who lives where is part of the division into districts. The California Citizens Redistricting Commission and the L.A. County Redistricting Commission have established websites for residents to use to define the communities important to them. At http://www.DrawMyCACommunity.org, you will find a three-step tool: (1) Describe the community you are most a part of by giving it a name and defining its shared interests, (2) draw its boundaries on the map provided with simple tools, and (3) submit it to the Commission.
In these processes, there should be respect for political boundaries (towns or school districts) and neighborhood/community boundaries; moreover, all parts of a district must connect to one another.
The final layer of redistricting will take place right in your own backyard—your city or school district. You may have to dig a little to learn who is doing what, but it is definitely worth your time to find out and participate.
Hopefully, you now have a better understanding of the layers of government that affect your daily life. The people who represent you in the various layers should understand your values. Having districts that contain groups of people who share your values is important. That’s why the redistricting process matters and why you should make sure your opinion is part of the process. Participate!
—Anita Mackey, League of Women Voters Pasadena Area
