Report to Mayor and City Council
Thursday, April 16, 2015
Discussion
SUBJECT:
Title
DISCUSSION AND REQUEST FOR DIRECTION CONCERNING CHANGING FROM AT-LARGE TO BY-DISTRICT SYSTEM FOR ELECTION OF CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS (CITY COUNCIL)
Body
I. SUMMARY
Legal action against the City under the California Voting Rights Act (CVRA) has been threatened, if the City does not begin the process of transitioning from at-large to district-based elections. Recently in February, 2019 the City of Santa Monica was the latest public entity to have a court find it in violation of the CVRA and judicially order a switch to district-based elections.
Government Code Section 34886 allows the City to, by ordinance, change from at-large elections for the City Council to district-based elections. The City could establish four districts for election of members of the City Council, with the Mayor continuing to be elected at-large by all the voters in the City.
The Elections Code lays out several requirements, including at least four public hearings, which the City must satisfy prior to adopting an ordinance formally transitioning to district-based elections.
A first step in moving the City to district-based elections is consultation with a demographer to assist the City with establishing both the data necessary to complete the process as well as a timetable for meeting state and federal requirements for the transition. Pursuant to Carson Municipal Code Section 2611(c), and previous Council direction, staff has obtained bids and has selected demographer Compass Demographics, Inc. to assist the City with this process for a contract sum of $23,500, which is within the signing authority of the City Manager.
At the direction of City Council, staff will both proceed to work with the demographer to gather and review the data and establish a timeline for the City to switch to districts prior to the November 3, 2020 General Municipal election and report back to Council, as well as prepare a timel...
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