Redistricting ballot measure could shake up LA City Hall

In November, voters in the city of Los Angeles will decide on a ballot measure that would create an independent redistricting commission.

The measure could shake up power at City Hall.

Why would it do that?

If passed, the measure would allow the creation of a commission outside the L.A. City Council that would draw the political boundaries for council districts every 10 years. In the past, that task was controlled by the council itself, so members drew their own districts — usually to keep themselves in power.

Why now?

The proposal is a direct result of the secret City Hall tapes scandal that surfaced nearly two years ago. Three members of the City Council and the head of the L.A. County Labor Federation could be heard on the tapes plotting how to maintain their own power through redistricting. (One of those council members has since resigned; a second lost his election; a third, Kevin de León, is running for reelection. De León apologized for his comments, but doesn't think they warrant him resigning.)

The idea of an independent city redistricting commission had been around for a while — the county and state have independent panels — but the furor over the tapes forced city of L.A. politicians to consider it.

Would a new commission change much?

In short — yes.

Pomona College Political Science Professor Sara Sadhwani, who served on the state’s independent redistricting commission, said the change could be significant.

“The way people define their neighborhoods might be very different than how politicians have defined them in the past so it's entirely possible these maps could be radically different,” Sadhwani told LAist.

At the same time, one of the legal requirements for redistricting is that a commission preserve the core of previous districts. Among other requirements, the commission would have to keep communities of interest together and it would be barred from drawing lines based on race or ethnicity.

Is race a factor at all?

This is one of the most contentious issues in a city as diverse as L.A.

Right now, Black people make up about 8% of the city’s population but hold 20% of the City Council seats. (It's important to note that L.A.'s mayor — who is not part of the City Council — is Black and the incoming council president is Black — two of the most powerful positions in the city.)

By contrast, Latino people make up about half the city and hold a third of the seats

One of the reasons for that is voter participation.

Raphe Soenenshein, the executive director of the John Randolph Haynes and Dora Haynes Foundation, said it's unclear whether an independent redistricting panel would draw lines that would end up reducing the number of Black people elected to the council.

“People will certainly be talking about and advocating about racial and ethnic representation and that will be part of the debate — it won't be the whole debate in drawing the lines but it will be part of it,” Sonenshein said.

It's also pretty clear the number of Black people on the 15-member City Council will drop from three to two. But that's not because of redistricting. It's because City Councilmember Curren Price is termed out of office next year.

Price’s district is more than three quarters Latino, and when he is termed out a Latino candidate will likely win the seat.

What else can we expect?

Supporters of the measure hope community groups will play a large part in any process undertaken by an independent commission and that it listens to them more readily than a commission controlled by politicians.

Current City Council President Paul Krekorian, who supports the measure, said elected leaders should be prepared to see very different political maps drawn by an independent panel.

“It may prove to be very inconvenient for sitting members of the City Council, and that’s just the ways its going to have to go,” Krekorian said.

If the measure passes, the new independent redistricting panel would not be created until 2030 after the next census. The first election to be affected would be in 2032.

By then Krekorian and the rest of the current council that put the measure on the ballot will be termed out of office.