Check out the new report from Demos and CGS,
Drawing Lines: A
Public Interest Guide to Real Redistricting Reform on the weaknesses
in proposals for Independent Redistricting Commissions in California.
A summary of the major findings follows after the jump.
Redistricting Proposals Fail to Address Needs of Californians
According to Report Released By Public Interest Coalition
Current Plans Do Not Go Far Enough to Promote Minority Representation,
Increase Competition, and Curb Partisan Influence, Groups Say
New York, NY/Los Angeles, CA-- A new report, Drawing Lines: A Public
Interest Guide to Real Redistricting Reform, released today by Demos and the Center for Governmental Studies, shows that current legislation and proposed initiatives on redistricting all fail to sufficiently address the needs of the public, and suggests clear guidelines for much fairer redistricting. The report responds to the California State Legislature and Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, who are considering sweeping changes to the way California draws electoral district boundaries with its consideration of several new proposals that would give redistricting authority to an "Independent
Redistricting Commission," and take it away from partisan legislative control.
Drawing Lines recommends criteria for selection of Independent
Redistricting Commission members, key components to be included in any
redistricting plan, and analyzes the major features of each current proposal
against the recommendations. The report finds that each one falls short of
assuring fair representation of California's
population.
"In California's 2004
legislative and congressional elections, none of the 153 seats changed party
hands, even in districts where no incumbent was running," noted Bob Stern,
CGS President. "This lack of competition is due significantly to the
legislature's decision to redraw electoral districts to protect party
boundaries."
Drawing Lines shows that, while redistricting should be conducted by
an Independent Commission, none of the various proposals under current
consideration does enough to encourage the creation of more competitive
districts or better representation of communities of color, the areas where
California is most in need of improvement.
"A number of states are considering Independent Redistricting
Commissions. This is an opportunity for California
to draft model legislation that other states can use to end decades of limited
minority representation and partisan cronyism," said Steven Carbó, Director of Demos' Democracy Program.
Public Interest Goals
The report finds that the public interest will be served better by amending
current and any future proposals to achieve the following goals:
Independence: Create an Independent Redistricting Commission and insulate the
redistricting process from legislative control.
Minority Representation:
Protect minority influence in a judicious manner.
Competition: Increase the
number of close contests.
Partisan Fairness: Ensure
that no party can capture and unfairly exert influence on the
redistricting process.
Recommended Features of an Independent Redistricting Commission
Drawing Lines also outlines five key areas for Commission composition
and execution that would ensure a fair process for drawing district lines in California.
Membership:
Commissioners should reflect California's
diversity and be balanced to ensure that no single party can unduly
influence the process. Commissioners should be insulated from political
influences and ambitions to ensure fair, objective decision-making.
Selection Process: The
Commissioner
selection process should emphasize
neutrality, equality and fairness, while mitigating possible political and
incumbent-protection gerrymandering.
Criteria: Voting
Rights Act, minority representation and competitiveness criteria should
not be compromised in favor of other redistricting criteria. The
Commission's objectives should be carefully and clearly defined to avoid
allowing Commissioners to pursue partisan or incumbent-friendly goals.
Transparency and Public
Accountability: The Commission must reject the backroom deals that
characterize much of the public's image of redistricting and restore
public confidence through rigorous requirements for public hearings, open
meetings, accessible data, and transparent decision-making.
Implementation and Review:
The Commission must be assured the capacity to enact a plan, subject only
to Supreme Court review. The Commission should also be provided with legal
resources sufficient to defend the plan. The traditional decennial
redistricting rule should be respected to avoid what the Washington Post
calls "a dangerous trend, threatening a new front in partisan warfare
as district lines become subject to change whenever the political balance
shifts."
Currently Proposed Measures
"Unfortunately, the current measures don't go far enough to protect the
right of the public to choose their elected officials rather than having the
legislators choose their constituents," stated Jacqueline Jacobberger, President, League of Women Voters of
California.
The three most prominent proposals to reform the state's redistricting
process - Ted Costa's ballot initiative, ACAX1 3 (McCarthy, R-Bakersfield),
which is supported by Governor Schwarzenegger, and SCA 3 (Lowenthal,
D-Long Beach) - are each considered in-depth in this report. These measures
have provoked an important discussion and put the national spotlight on California's
flawed redistricting process.
Demos Policy Analyst Ari Weisbard and CGS
Project Manager Jeannie Wilkinson, the
report's co-authors concluded, "In light of the current proposals'
weaknesses, we advise amending all of the proposals to incorporate the public
interest recommendations in this report."
Drawing Lines, its findings and recommendations, have been endorsed
by a coalition of nonpartisan organizations, including: Asian Americans for
Civil Rights & Equality (AACRE), Asian Law Alliance, Asian Law Caucus, Asian
Pacific American
Legal Center,
Chinese for Affirmative Action / Center for Asian
American Advocacy, Chinese American Voter Education Committee, Common Cause of
California, and League of Women Voters of California.
This report was generously funded by grants from the James Irvine
Foundation. Copies of the full report are available from Demos and CGS. The views in the study do not necessarily
reflect the opinions of the Irvine Foundation, and it does not take any
responsibility for any of the statements or views in the report.
The Center for Governmental Studies creates innovative political and
media solutions to help individuals participate more effectively in their
communities and governments.
Demos: A Network for Ideas & Action is a national, nonpartisan
public policy organization based in New York.
Experts from CGS, Demos and the League of Women Voters of California are
available for comment, interviews or background briefings.