Currently, the representative politicians that are elected to office are responsible for drawing and redrawing the state office boundary lines. The proponents of this proposition assure the voter that this is an obvious conflict of interest, allowing politicians to gerrymander these boundaries in their favor, as to select their voters and thus stay incumbent. The passage of Proposition 11 will establish a small committee independent of the state's legislature comprised of 14 members, of which five Democrats, five Republicans, and four independent voters sit. These commissioners are required to be active voters. They are not allowed to be politicians, lobbyists, or even to have contributed more than $2,000 to any election in any single year.
A “Yes” vote means that under the State Constitution, a 14-member citizens redistricting commission would be formed to draw district maps for seats in the State Assembly and State Senate.
- If one believes that politicians misuse their power to their advantage, this is an opportunity to remove the power from them and invest it directly in the hands of the voters.
- No politicians, lobbyists, or big gift-givers to campaigns may serve on this commission, taking out the strong political and fiscal incentive of gerrymandering. Communities, rather than politicians would be the focus of district boundaries.
- The “Official Title and Summary” prepared by the Attorney General estimates that this prop will not cost the state money.
A “No” vote means that state and federal lawmakers would continue to draw district maps for seats in the State Assembly and State Senate.
- If one believes that an incumbent politician is accountable to his or her constituents, and can be held thus so, the passage of this proposition would remove that accountability and place it in the hands of people who have never held office.
- The creation of another state bureaucracy could cost the state more money, and having two bodies doing the work of what has been done by one may be inefficient and ineffective.
Comments
Opposing this measure because
Opposing this measure because it helps liberals is like opposing democracy because it might depose a beloved king. We need districts that serve geographic interests (our neighborhoods) not ideological ones. The current system of gerrymandering by the ruling party makes a mockery of representative democracy, and inhibits California's need for fundamental change in Sacramento. If the voters were so against extending term limits earlier this year, they should also be overwhelmingly for this proposition.
Normally I would be in favor
Normally I would be in favor of this sort of thing in a conservative state. But in a liberal state like California, a proposition like this hurts liberals.
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