Vancouver voters will doubtless select whether or not they need to break up into 4 districts this November, a conflicted metropolis council determined Monday.
After years of evaluate and punting the problem into the long run, councilors voted to draft a plan for electing council seats by district.
If accepted on the subsequent assembly, a measure would go earlier than voters asking them in the event that they need to divide town into 4 districts — although voters wouldn’t understand how the boundaries can be drawn. Residents would elect one councilor from every district in addition to two at-large councilors and a mayor who represents the entire metropolis. The change would go into impact for the 2027 common election.
The council has weighed districting time and time once more, and ordered the constitution evaluate committee to organize proposals in 2019 and 2024.
Many municipalities, together with Clark County and Portland, elect representatives by district. Proponents say districting makes councils extra various and ensures every a part of a jurisdiction are represented.
However a city-commissioned survey reveals voters are divided on districting. So is the council.
“We can’t draw those kinds of lines in Vancouver that ensure diverse perspective,” Councilor Ty Stober mentioned in an April workshop. “To me, it is not east versus west. … That’s not the diversity of perspective that I’m looking for. I’m looking for people who process the world in different ways.”
Districting will solely lead to geographical variety, some councilors say.
In response to voter data, the councilors’ neighborhoods are already comparatively dispersed. Data present councilors stay in east, west and central Vancouver.
The council can be essentially the most usually various within the metropolis’s historical past. A majority of councilors are feminine, together with two girls of shade and a veteran.
All through a number of current workshops, Mayor Anne McEnerny-Ogle resisted the thought of districting however mentioned the choice ought to finally lie with voters. She expressed concern that councilors could solely advocate for his or her district and never town as a complete.
“I believe it is the responsibility of all seven of us to be out in the entire city at all 71 neighborhood association meetings, at all nine business association meetings, at all the cultural events throughout the entire city and not just in our district,” she mentioned in an April workshop.
Others disagreed or didn’t have sturdy opinions.
“If the status quo were OK, it wouldn’t come up every single charter review,” Councilor Erik Paulsen mentioned in a Might workshop.
Councilor Diana Perez mentioned Monday that she believes placing districting on the poll is a chance to offer voters a significant voice.
“I think that districting clarifies our accountability to our residents,” she mentioned.
