Among other things Tuesday night the Council will consider language to use on the 2018 ballot to allow voters to choose (a) if the Mayor is elected citywide or appointed and (b) how many districts should we have, from 4 to 9 (as allowed in a General Law city.)
In addition to these items, there are other issues to consider –
- Should there be a residency requirement for living in the district (e.g., 180 days)?
- If a Council member resigns/dies/is removed, is the replacement appointed by the Council or is it the person who came in second in the district in the past election?
- If a Council person is recalled, is he/she recalled by the entire city or only by the district?
- If no one runs from a district, shall the Council appoint a member for that district, and should that member live in that district?
- If we elect a citywide Mayor, should he/she receive a greater salary, and if so, by how much?
- Should a citywide Mayor serve 4 years or 2 years?
Thursday night the city held our first public workshop on the transition to district elections, led by the City Clerk Stephanie Smith (who is also the Elections Officer). About 20 people showed up at the El Toro Public Library and spent 90 minutes learning about the process and asking questions. Here are some of the questions and the answers.
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(Note – I tried to copy Ms. Smith’s answers but in some cases I am paraphrasing. I take responsibility for any remarks and they should not be taken as official responses from the City Clerk).
GENERAL
How does the district system impact city services? - It doesn’t. Services are provided citywide and will continue to be provided citywide.
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The system has information about race, ethnicity, etc. How was this gathered? Self-report by people responding to the 2010 census.
Are districts based on voters? – No. Districts are based on population according to the 2010 census.
Do census tracts have the same number of people? No. They range in size from 0 to 4,230.
DRAWING MAPS
What is the major requirement in drawing a map? Create districts of equal size (5 districts of 15,453 people each) according to the “one man one vote” principle.
Are there other requirements? Try to keep neighborhoods together. Try to make districts as compact as possible.
Must I draw all 5 districts or can I only create my own district? You can make one district, but try to make it with 15,453 people, keep the neighborhoods together, and make it as compact as possible.
Can I draw up districts to favor one race or ethnic group? No. This is against federal law.
In drawing districts can I split populations based on race or ethnicity? Yes. You don’t have to, but you may.
What happens with my map after I submit it? It will be analyzed by the City’s consultants, accumulated with similarly drawn maps (if applicable), and submitted to the Council.
Can I split census tracts into two different districts? Yes, but try not to.
How many maps can I submit? As many as you like.
Can I add comments to our maps? Yes, please do if applicable.
Does the website system work on an iPad or iPhone? No.
Can anyone submit a map, including people from other cities? Yes.
What’s to stop special interests from submitting a map? Nothing. If it’s a good map it doesn’t matter if it comes from special interests or anyone else.
Can I come into City Hall and use the computers there? Yes.
POLITICAL
How will districts impact the Council votes? Will Council members only vote for their districts? Almost all city business is citywide (e.g., street sweeping, garbage collection). Issues specific to one district are rare, but just because something is happening in one district doesn't mean Council members from another district will oppose it.
Once we have districts, will Council members form alliances? Council members form alliances now. Things probably won't change once we go to districts. Maybe they will improve.
What happens if my district Council member is useless? You can vote him/her out or recall him/her.
LEGAL
Can a new Council in 2018 reverse the district system? – Yes, but they do so at the City’s peril. Every city that fought the changes has lost in court, and collectively they lost over $10 million. Statewide more than 66 cities are changing.
Even after we switch to the district system, what’s to stop the lawyers from suing the City based on the type of map the Council accepts? Nothing, but it hasn’t happened.
Are there any other options? No: not for a General Law city.
QUESTIONS FOR THE COUNCIL
- Should we exclude maps from anyone who doesn’t live or work in the City?
- Shall we offer an award for the map that is selected?
- Will the Council support lawsuits from other cities fighting against the district requirement?
- Do we need more time than 4 months for this process?
NEXT MEETING
Want to learn more? There is another session Thursday night at 6:30 pm at the Sports Park
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Dr. Jim Gardner is on the City Council for Lake Forest. You can check him out on LinkedIn and/or Facebook and you can share your thoughts about the City at Lake Forest Town Square on Facebook. His comments are not meant to reflect official City Policy.
Dr. Gardner has office hours every Tuesday from 4 pm to 6 pm at the City Hall. In addition, he holds a mini town meeting every month. The next meeting will be on Sept 9 at 2 pm at the El Toro Public Library.
