After losing a congressional seat, participation in California redistricting is critical

The 2020 census chronicled a new reality for California, one in which shifting migration patterns resulted in the loss of one of the state’s 53 seats in the House of Representatives and one electoral vote in the next presidential election. The Golden State remains the nation’s most populous and continued to grow during the decade before the census, but the pace was slower compared with previous decades.

How California manages this change comes down to a critical process that too few care about.

The state is undergoing its once-per-decade redistricting process at every level of representative government. That includes county supervisors, city councils, school boards, water districts, community college districts — all being drawn simultaneously through their own distinct processes.

At the state level, some of the most critical days are this month as citizen commissioners help determine the maps for 52 seats in Congress, 40 in the state Senate, 80 in the state Assembly and four on the Board of Equalization, which oversees tax collection. Public line-drawing meetings are ramping up ahead of a Nov. 15 deadline, when the preliminary drafts of these 176 total maps will be released.

To ensure our democracy reflects the will of the people, it’s imperative that Californians participate in this crucial phase of redistricting.

Equal representation is one of our nation’s most fundamental values, but in parts of California and much of the country, districts have been gerrymandered to allow politicians to choose their voters rather than voters choosing their politicians. Unequal representation enables minority rule and corruption, and weakens the pillars of our democracy.

Thankfully, the Golden State employs a redistricting system designed to overcome such harmful forces. California is one of only seven states that empowers its citizens to draw its electoral boundaries.

For decades, state legislators drew California’s districts, and the courts were the only check in place to ensure maps were drawn equally. In 2008, voters approved Proposition 11 and put the redistricting power into the hands of California residents, creating the California Citizens Redistricting Commission to draw legislative districts. Two years later, voters rejected an attempt to eliminate the commission and instead expanded its mandate to include congressional districts.

The bipartisan commission is composed of 14 commissioners who emerged from a pool of 20,000 applications. Sixty were submitted to the Legislature, where each political party had a chance to toss out applicants. A lottery system was used to determine the final membership: five Republicans, five Democrats and four with no party affiliation.

The commissioners follow strict criteria. Districts are supposed to have equal populations, comply with the Voting Rights Act, be contiguous, be geographically compact and minimize the splitting of communities.

For these commissioners to effectively serve California’s 40 million residents and meet those standards, public participation is needed from every community. Specifically, residents of the Sacramento region need to inform their commissioners about the distinct characteristics of their neighborhoods so boundaries are not drawn to favor a particular political party, class or race.

Residents who wish to submit public comments and help define their local districts can email the redistricting commission at votersfirstact@crc.ca.gov, call 916-323-0323 or visit wedrawthelinesca.org.