Arizona’s redistricting for Legislative and Congressional voting districts began earlier this year with the appointment of a 5 person independent commission (IRC). The Commission was tasked with starting from scratch to draw all new districts, not re-draw existing districts.
Now, that commission has released the first grid maps for consideration and comment by the public. The next public meeting will be in Surprise on Oct. 7, 2021 at 4pm. There will be satellite locations in Flagstaff, San Luis and Kayenta. The Commission has set up a virtual link so the public may participate virtually as well.
Why do you care about redistricting? For starters Arizona is one of eight states that has an independent commission draw proposed district lines on a map and then submit that map to the pubic for comment and suggestions. In other states the State Legislature draws the map.
The Commission has set up a website location for members of the public to submit their grid maps: https://maps.azredistricting.gov/redistricting/
You have an opportunity to weigh in on the first map, a grid map, drawn strictly to incorporate equal population (as closely as possible +/- 1 person) within each legislative and congressional district.
As you look at the two Grid Maps you will find 3 Congressional Districts have a population of 794,612 and 6 Congressional Districts have a population of 794,611. You will find 12 Legislative Districts will have a population count of 238,384 and 18 will have a population of 238,383.
In the end the Redistricting Commission will need to also incorporate the elements of compactness and contiguousness into the map. The district should be compact resembling a circle as close as possible, and contiguous – meaning all parts of the district are physically connected.
The grid maps are starting points for the discussion before draft maps are created. You can watch past IRC meetings at the Arizona Redistricting Commission website and access more information so that you can provide valuable input to the commission.
Of particular interest is the meeting on September 14th when the IRC discussed the grid maps and approved them. You can watch the presentation and discussion as well as read the chat box comments.
Keep in mind there are several factors when drawing all new districts:
Population count
Compactness
Contiguous district
Federal Voting Rights Act
Geographical features of the district
Respect for communities of interest
Competitiveness of the district
Lend your voice to the discussion of what YOUR new Legislative and Congressional district will look like in 2022.