CITIZENS, GIVE REDISTRICTERS YOUR VIEWS

The Modesto Bee
April 4, 2011

Through two state propositions in recent years, California voters said very clearly they wanted citizens rather than politicians drawing the boundaries for state legislative and congressional districts. 

We supported both those measures on the grounds it will improve the chances that the districts reflect communities of interest rather than those of politicians and parties. 

With the 2010 Census numbers now available, the California Citizens Redistricting Commission is about to get started on the maps, which must be done by August, in preparation for the 2012 elections. 

As last weekend's stories by Bee staff writer J.N. Sbranti pointed out, Stanislaus County is criss-crossed by political boundaries, leaving many citizens confused as to who represents them in the Legislature and the House of Representatives. 

Some of the boundaries are ludicrous, such the invisible line down the middle of Rose Avenue in Modesto, which separates the 18th and 19th Congressional Districts. It's there because the politicians carved out the 18th as a Democratic district and the 19th as a Republican district. 

Another reason for the screwy lines in Stanislaus County is that Merced County is all within one Assembly district, one Senate district and one Congressional District -- a legacy from a 1975 decision that identified Merced as one of four California counties in technical violation of the federal Voting Rights Act. 

At the time, Castle Air Force Base was in full operation and its military employees were counted in the Census as of voting age, even though many of them voted absentee out-of-state. But the federal number crunchers ruled that Merced failed to meet the standard that 50 percent of eligible voters had to be registered in the county. 

As a result of that ruling, Merced was "kept whole" in terms of legislative and congressional districts, while Stanislaus was sliced and diced and divvied up into more districts than desirable in order to balance out the population. 

Today, Merced no longer has an Air Force base and has become a very multicultural county, with significant Latino, Sikh, Hmong and other populations. Not surprisingly, its officials resent any implication of racism. 

Merced leaders also would like to shed the designation because it makes their in-county redistricting processes more expensive, with mandated reviews by the federal Department of Justice. 

We hope Merced succeeds in getting rid of that technical violation -- for its sake and and for the sake of Stanislaus County. It probably won't happen before the lines that are redrawn this year. Thus, we hope Stanislaus County residents will let the state redistricting commission know that we want and need legislative and congressional boundaries that make more sense. 

The commission will hold hearings around the state starting Saturday in Redding. No hearings are planned in Modesto, but there will be some in Merced and Stockton. The easiest way to communicate with the commission is probably by e-mail to votersfirstact@crc.ca.gov or by phone, 866-356-5217. More information is available on the commission Web site, www.wedrawthelines.ca.gov. 

The 14-member commission includes one person from the San Joaquin Valley, Michelle DiGuilio of Stockton. She visited with our editorial board last week, and we were impressed. DiGuilio has only lived in Stockton for 12 years, but has strong family ties to the Tracy area, and she spent a year working for the Great Valley Center in Modesto. She is the stay-at-home mother of four children between 8 and 2 -- experience that prepares her for lots of "me" and "mine" kinds of arguments. 

Even if DiGuilio represents the valley to the very best of her ability, the commission needs to hear from us. We want redistricting to be a citizen-driven rather than a politics-driven process. So, this is our chance to let our voice be heard. 

What do you think? If you want to share your views on this editorial, go to www.modbee.com/opinions, then click on "Editorials" and leave your comment at the end of the editorial. Or, click on "Submit Letters" to create a letter to the editor.