Politics & Government
Ted Gaines Still Your Senator? May Not Be For Long
Big changes were made in Roseville's Assembly and Senate district lines during redistricting.
Roseville may have new representation in the State Senate and Assembly under new district boundaries announced Monday.
The maps will be used for the 2012 election assuming that they survive any potential challenges.
What does this mean for Roseville?
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Senate District
Currently, Roseville falls within Senate District 1. District 1 is represented by Ted Gaines, a Republican. With the proposed changes, Roseville will switch to Senator Doug LaMalfa of District 4. He is also a Republican.
Find out what's happening in Rosevillefor free with the latest updates from Patch.
Roseville will be at the Southern most tip with District 4 encompassing a larger expanse to the north of Red Bluff and parts of Mendocino National Forest.
Assembly District
District 4's current Assemblywoman is Republican Beth Gaines. In the final draft of district lines, Roseville will no longer be represented by District 4 but changes to District 6.
District 6 is represented by Democrat Assemblyman Jared Huffman. District 6 previously encompassed all of Marin County and portions of southern Sonoma County.
With the new lines, District 6 moves to the eastern side of Sacramento with Roseville at its center and Citrus Heights at the western most border. Within the district are still what Mark Wolinski, government relations representative with the , considered “communities of interest,” such as Rocklin and Lincoln.
Congressional District
As for Roseville's Congressional representative, it remains in District 4 under Republican Tom McClintock. The visible change is in the districts landscape. It no longer covers the Northeast edge of California but rather, dips down beyond Placer County and into the Yosemite and Kings Canyon Forest region.
Board of Equalization District
Board of equalization districts remained relatively the same. Roseville stays in District 1, which is represented by Democrat Betty Yee.
District Decisions
Final redistricting lines for California were certified Monday by the Secretary of State and submitted to the Supreme Court.
A press conference was held as the Citizens Redistricting Commission made their final vote in favor of the final draft of district lines for the Assembly, Board of Equalization, Congressional and Senate lines.
In November of 2008, voters passed the Voters FIRST Act, which appeared as Proposition 11 in the general election. Before, the lines were drawn by the legislature, which many believed were involved in gerrymandering and partisan politics.
The Citizens Redistricting Committee, or CRC, consists of 14 California citizens who volunteered for the position.
Some members of the commission had conflicted viewpoints of the overall affect or worth the CRC has actually had.
Vincent Barabba said at Monday's press conference that Californians had been frustrated in the past by a legislative process that drew lines for their own political interests.
The CRC, he said, “was charged with the responsibility to create districts that provided candidates of all political persuasions a fair chance to be elected.”
But Dr. Michael Ward, another commissioner from the CRC, read a statement at the press conference that was critical of the process.
“This commission failed to draw maps in an open and transparent process,” he said. “This commission made decisions based on political motives.”
He went on to claim that the commission had broken the law and eluded to backdoor deals. When asked about what he meant, he believed his comments spoke for themselves.
Ward also claimed that the CRC had “failed to adequately give other groups a chance to voice their concerns.”
Some groups, such as California GOP members and National Association of Latino Elected Appointed Officials, believe the district lines do not fairly represent their populations.
Opponents of the redistricting plan have 90 days to collect 504,000 signatures, which would qualify for a referendum of the plan.
The district lines won't come into play until the 2012 elections for various district representatives.
“I think people aren't going to see the value of what was done until we've had several elections,” Barabba said. “Drawing of the districts is the beginning of the process.”
Here's a look at the current and future district boundaries:
