Lincoln is headed towards district-based elections, after city receives legal threat

Lincoln is the latest municipality in the Sacramento region that will move towards a district-based voting, after city officials said they received a legal threat alleging the city’s current “at-large” elections disenfranchise Latino voters.

In October, Lincoln received a demand letter from the Malibu-based law firm Shenkman & Hughes, which argued the city’s current election system has “impeded the emergence of Latino candidates in Lincoln’s citywide elections, resulting in a near-complete absence of Latino candidates for a seat on the Lincoln City Council.”

During its Nov. 12 meeting, Lincoln City Council unanimously approved beginning the process of drawing new district boundaries for the November 2020 election.

Cities throughout the Sacramento area — including Citrus Heights, Elk Grove and Davis — have already made the switch to district-based elections this year after firms threatened to sue under the California Voting Rights Act.

The attorneys claim the municipalities violated state law because at-large elections dilutes the ability of minority voters to influence the outcome of elections.

Councilwoman Alyssa Silhi said that it’s “indisputable” that the council needs a non-white member, but that making the switch isn’t right for the city because the district sizes would be too small — “we’re too small, we’re not ready, we’re not ripe yet,” she said during the Nov. 12 meeting.

“The purpose is to give unrepresented voices a voice. The purpose is fine,” Silhi said. “The problem is the way (the California Voting Rights Act) is written is so loose, it’s like the unicorn for attorneys. ... It’s almost impossible for them to lose on it.”

No municipality has successfully defended its use of at-large elections. In 2008, Modesto was forced to pay $3 million, and in 2015, Shenkman & Hughes won its legal battle against Palmdale, costing taxpayers there $4.5 million.

According to the demand letter, Shenkman & Hughes is representing the Southwest Voter Registration Education Project, a Texas-based organization aimed at increasing Latino voter participation. The nonprofit has a California regional office in Los Angeles, according to its website.

About 20 percent of Lincoln identifies as Hispanic, according to recent U.S. Census Bureau estimates.

The demand letter cites Keela Rodriguez’s failed run for city council in 2014, stating she lost despite an “impressive record of service (and) support from the Latino community.”

The city of Lincoln has hired National Demographics Corp. to help draw potential district maps, and assist with getting public feedback and map submissions. The firm has consulted dozens of California jurisdictions transitioning to district-based elections.

A map designed by the firm for Roseville’s new district boundaries was heavily criticized by residents last month for ensuring current city council members remained in separate districts.

The law firm Shenkman & Hughes in particular has been prolific in sending out similar demand letters to jurisdictions, and Woodland attorney Matt Rexroad, a former Yolo County supervisor, has also sent legal threats to cities in Northern California.

Even if a city makes the switch to district elections by the state-mandated deadline, it could still pay up to $30,000 in attorney’s fees to the firm that sent the initial demand letter.

At its upcoming Dec. 10 meeting, the Lincoln City Council will hold another hearing to get input from the public on what factors should be considered when drawing new district boundaries. Those factors include how to define the city’s neighborhoods, what “communities of interests” exist, and whether the mayor should be elected citywide or selected by the council.

Residents can propose maps for the council to consider using a paper map or by using National Demographics’s online map tool.

The council is expected to select its final district map Jan. 28.