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"Communities of Interest" and Solano County Redistricting
How many different communities do you belong to? Right now, across America, US Census results are being used to redraw voting districts for everything from city councils to the U.S. House of Representatives. The goal: each voter will be equally represented in government, so each district is drawn to include roughly the same number of citizens. There's more to redistricting than numbers, however. "Traditional redistricting principles" included in California's 2008 Voters FIRST Act (Prop. 11) included communities of interest, shaped by race, ethnic and cultural identity, language, and religion. Homeowner associations, community centers, and shared community spaces, such as parks and shopping areas are communities of interest, and so are income and education levels, political boundary lines like school districts and city limits, and natural and man-made features, including streets, highways, canals, hills, etc. All of these factors can and should be considered in redistricting decisions.
State redistricting guidelines don't govern redistricting at local levels. For county supervisors, boards of education, school districts, city councils, community college districts, or other elected boards, state guidelines can easily be ignored in the redistricting process, especially without citizen participation. Political beliefs and priorities differ, and manipulating district boundaries to exclude or include certain voters is common, especially if citizens don't pay attention to the redistricting process. Balancing population and maintaining the integrity of communities of interest so that people with shared concerns can advocate for themselves and make their voices heard can be difficult. If particular interests prevail, others will be ignored or weakened. To learn which districts you live in, here's a link to Solano County district maps:
https://www.solanocounty.com/depts/rov/district_maps_and_lookup/district_maps.asp
For school districts, city councils, and other elective boards or districts here in Solano County, search by name for websites and district information.
Deciding who will be represented is crucial in deciding whose interests will prevail. For example, close public attention to the process of drawing district maps limits opportunities to manipulate district boundaries. Gerrymandering is the practice of drawing district lines to give one interest group an advantage over another. Methods like packing, (concentrating communities of interest in a single district to limit their influence, and cracking (fragmenting communities of interest to minimize their influence with their representatives), are gerrymandering tactics often visible in local redistricting decisions. The antidote is CITIZEN PARTICIPATION. At levels of government not bound by California's state redistricting rules, citizens' voices need to be heard loud and clear Redistricting without citizen input dilutes individual as well as community voices, weakening and in some cases, eliminating the power of the vote.
Solano County city councils, school boards, etc. need to hear from you about the interests and concerns of your communities. If local redistricting is ignored by those whose lives are most impacted by decisions made at local levels, the priorities of local government are shaped without input from all citizens. Deciding who will be represented is crucial in deciding whose interests will prevail. Give this some thought. Ask yourself, what does the community in which I live need from local government? Do I want to be taken into consideration when voting district boundaries are redrawn? The next two months are crucial to fair election districts in Solano County. Show up and make sure your communities' voice(s) are heard!
Here's an example: Upcoming in-person meetings designed to inform the public about redistricting Solano County Supervisorial districts.
IN-PERSON MEETING DATES, TIME AND LOCATIONS
- District 1 Community Outreach Meeting
Saturday, July 31, 2021 starting at 9 a.m.
John F. Kennedy Library, 505 Santa Clara Street, Vallejo
- District 2 Community Outreach Meeting
Saturday, August 7, 2021 starting at 9 a.m.
Cordelia Library, 5050 Business Center Drive, Fairfield
- District 3 Community Outreach Meeting
Saturday, August 14, 2021 starting at 9 a.m.
Community Event Center, 601 Texas Street, Fairfield
- District 4 Community Outreach Meeting
Saturday, August 21, 2021 starting at 9 a.m.
Vacaville Town Square Library, 1 Town Square Place, Vacaville
- District 5 Community Outreach Meeting
Saturday, August 28, 2021 starting at 9 a.m.
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Contact: Marilee Scholl
League of Women Voters of Solano County was first founded in Benicia in 2004 and in 2020 expanded to all of Solano County. Our membership includes over 130 people from Benicia, Cordelia, Dixon, Fairfield, Vallejo, Vacaville, Suisun City, and Rio Vista, reflecting the diversity of Solano County. You can contact us at lwvsolano [at] gmail.com or visit our website at http://lwvsolanocounty.org/
The National League of Women Voters was founded in 1920 and is a non-partisan organization of women and men that is community-based and organized at the local, state, and national levels. Our mission is to promote political responsibility through the informed and active participation of citizens in governance and to act on selected and studied common-good governmental issues and policies.
