Ballot Measure 20-362, a redistricting proposal on your November ballot, seeks to amend the Lane County Charter to establish a Citizens Redistricting Committee and to redraw district voting maps before the next election in November 2026 rather than waiting for updated U.S. Census data in 2030.
However, the changes proposed in Measure 20-362 have already been addressed in the Lane County code and with our current district map, which was approved just three years ago. Based on the 2020 U.S. Census data, our present Lane County district map was developed and reviewed extensively by an Independent Redistricting Committee rather than by elected officials. Commissioners were presented with three maps and voted in December 2021 for their preferred map.
Redistricting is the process of creating representational maps for state and local communities. Redistricting impacts how our communities are represented and determines how resources are distributed. Historically, politicians have often manipulated the redistricting process to expand or protect their power. This manipulation is called gerrymandering. To the League, Ballot Measure 20-362 is a hit in the solar plexus. The League is committed to ensuring that maps are drawn fairly and accurately, with all voices considered and equitably represented. We can only achieve this with voices from all communities. A random draw by many “eligible” applicants (sorted by district), as provided by Measure 20-362, does not come close to meeting that test — nor does the section state that the County Commissioner makes the selection if there are not enough eligible applicants.
The League of Women Voters of Lane County wholeheartedly supports the establishment of Independent Redistricting Committees. Unfortunately, we oppose Ballot Measure 20-362 because of the content and process. The devil is in the details. The mid-cycle requirement to change our district maps before the 2026 election is a non-starter for the League. It is highly unusual and costly. The process for putting Measure 20-362 on your ballot ignored public comment, the advice of our Lane County elections official, and the Lane Charter Review Committee. (Go to the Lane County website for reports, agendas, minutes, and recordings of committee and Commissioners meetings.)
Where the details live — whether in the Lane Charter or in code — is important. Voting for any change to our Charter costs us taxpayers. It should not have to happen for minor adjustments. Putting details in code rather than in the Charter allows for nuanced changes and improvements. We should be able to learn from our experience and develop a better design, not this late-in-the-game proposal created by a single individual with no evidence of public input.
Ballot Measure 20-362 seeks to push aside the current map and the work of a Charter Review Committee convened in October 2022 to study and offer charter amendments. Their report was presented to Commissioners back in October 2023. In response to some commissioners’ request for an expedited review of this new proposal presented in late May, the Charter Review Committee unanimously recommended rejecting it, as did the Lane County Clerk. But in a last-minute 3-2 decision, Commissioners voted to put this redistricting plan on the November ballot anyway.
The League’s goal is to have an Independent Redistricting Committee that works for the people of Lane County, not for politicians. Measure 20-362 just does not measure up.
The League is a political grassroots network, a membership organization that believes the freedom to vote is a nonpartisan issue. For more than a century, we’ve worked to empower voters and defend democracy. As a women-led organization, we encourage everyone to participate in our democracy.
Terry Parker is the president of the League of Women Voters of Lane County and wrote this for The Chronicle.