City Council Meeting Date: January 11, 2022
To: Mayor & City Council
From: Lynette Peterson, City Clerk
Ben Martig, City Administrator
Subject:
TITLE
Review of Redistricting Process Including City Process for Establishment or Re-Establishment of Election Precincts, Designation of Polling Places and Confirmation or Redefinition of Ward Districts.
BODY
Action Requested:
Review of Redistricting Process including City process for establishment or re-establishment of election precincts, designation of polling places and confirmation or redefinition of ward districts.
Summary Report:
A broad overview of redistricting will be presented at the Worksession. Redistricting is the process of redrawing the boundaries of election districts after the completion of the decennial census. The purpose of redistricting is to ensure that the people of each district are equally represented. Following the census, the City must either confirm or redefine the ward boundaries.
The redistricting guide from the Secretary of State's Office on Redistricting is attached (Attachment 1). The early and late schedules for redistricting are also attached (Attachments 2 and 3).
Staff will review principles and timelines for redistricting. In 2011, the City adopted a redistricting process, timeline & principles. This is also attached for your reference and as a guideline for redistricting (Attachment 4).
Basic Redistricting Principles:
* By Statute, most election districts must be:
o Compact
o Contiguous
o Equal in population (to some degree)
o Composed of Census blocks
* Other principles that may inform the state (or local) redistricting process:
o Preserve political subdivisions
o Preserve communities of interest
o Political competitiveness
o Not protect or pair up incumbents
* Comply with requirements in City Charter
o Section 3.3 Council Compositions and Election:
The council shall be composed of a mayor and six (6) council members who ...
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