A city council member you didn't vote for may represent you by the end of the year.
As metro Phoenix grows,that expansion isn't neatly spread out. To keep up with it, several Phoenix-area cities will redraw city districts this fallto make sure city council members represent equal numbers of people.
Cities with council districts redraw those boundaries every 10 years after each U.S. census.
Four cities looking to do that by the next election in November include:
- Mesa
- Glendale
- Peoria
- Buckeye
Phoenix and Surprise plan to take longer to redraw their council boundaries.
Other Valley cities, such as Chandler, Scottsdale and Goodyear,don't use a district system, instead electing council members on a citywide basis.
For the four cities redistricting this fall, the COVID-19 pandemic has created a time crunch.City officialshave received preliminary population data from the U.S. census but won't get additionaldetails helpful toredistricting efforts until late September. The pandemic delayed the final reports, which cities historicallyreceiveby April.
Some cities and regional organizations, such as the Maricopa Association of Governments,opted not to wait, instead analyzing the preliminary data to create district population counts for redistricting.
Despite the rush cities will face in analyzing the data, Peoria Mayor Cathy Carlat says she is a big supporter of council districts.
"It allows your representative to live in your community, to go to your HOA meetings, to drive on your streets and to shop at the same stores you do," she said. "No matter how big your city gets, those kinds of districts allow you to have the kind of representation you would have in a small town."
Want a say in your district's boundaries?
Residents in the four area cities undertaking redistricting can weigh in on potential changes and eventually will be able to review proposals.
Once a city settles on a proposed map, it will still need a city council vote. The maps used to need U.S. Department of Justice approval, but a 2013 U.S. Supreme Court ruling nixed that requirement.
Mesa
The sprawling suburb east of Phoenix officially has more than 500,000 residents after the most recent census count, said Jeff Robbins, Mesa census and redistricting administrator.
In processing the available census data, city officials say much of Mesa's growth moved east.
City officials expectthat District 6, which roughly runs from Power to Meridian roads and Main Street to Germann Road, is nearly 24% larger than it should be at nearly 104,000 residents. On a map, the district will likely shrink geographically to spread those residents out among other nearby districts.
That district will need to shed some 20,000 residents to be close to equal with the rest of the city.
The same district was much larger than the rest of Mesa after the 2010 census, as well. At the time it was about 45% larger than it should have been with some 106,000 residents, according to the city. City leaders attribute its growth to wide open, easy-to-develop swaths of land.
By comparison, District 4, which roughly spans Alma School to Gilbert roads and Southern Avenue to University Drive, only has about 77,500 residents.This district includes downtown Mesa. Its boundaries will need to grow to bring in about 7,000 more people.
That district has grown. It had about 59,000 residents after the 2010 census.
Mesa officials plan to host map-drawing meetings and gather resident feedback in September and October before sending a map to a City Council vote in November.
Mesa is crunching to get this done as the Maricopa County Elections Department has a Dec. 15 deadline for cities and towns to submit the new maps, Robbins said.
Residents can find a schedule of public input meetings at mesaaz.gov/redistricting.
Glendale
Glendalehasn't seen the rapid growth that is reshaping areacities with huge swathes of land to develop, but it continues to be the West Valley's largest city with248,325 residents, according to the 2020 census.
Glendale grew by 21,600 residents between the 2010 and 2020 census counts, with most of the growth occurringin the the city's central and southeastern Barrel and Cactus districts.
The Barrel District,between 51st and 71st avenues bordered by Cactus Roadand Northern Avenue, is represented by Councilmember Bart Turner and grew by nearly 6,500 residents, according to data provided by city spokesperson Jay Crandall.
The second largest growth occurred in the Cactus District withabout 5,600 people. The district, betweenapproximately 43rd and 59th avenues bordered by Peoria Avenue and Camelback Road, is represented by Councilmember Ian Hugh.
Glendale spokesperson Jay Crandall said the city will redraw the districts to include approximately 41,388 residents each.
Achieving that goal wouldpose the greatest changes for the Cholla and Cactus districts, which would need to add 2,600 and remove 1,700 residents, respectively.
The Cholla district, represented by Councilmember Lauren Tolmachoff, sits on the northern edge of Glendale from Pinnacle Peak toBell roadson the south between 51stand 83rd avenues.
Crandall said the city is working to determine how Glendale residentscan get involved in the redistricting process.
Peoria
Peoria's population expanded to 190,985in the latest census count.
The Mesquite District, whichis in Peoria's fast-growing north end, is the city's largest at some 41,000 residents, according to 2020 census data provided by the Maricopa Association of Governments. It runs roughly from Happy Valley Road north to Lake Pleasant.
The city's smallest district is Ironwood, which spans99th to75th avenues and Bell toDeer Valley roads, at about 29,000 residents.
City officials will host in-person meetings about redistricting through October and November. Residents can find the schedule at peoriaaz.gov/redistricting.
Buckeye
The southwest Valley community of Buckeye grew faster than any other cityin the nationin thepast decade, with a population that bloomed nearly 80% to 91,000 residents.
The six council districts would need to reach approximately 15,250residents each to become completely equal.
Districts 4and 6 on the northernmost edge of the city grew the most, adding an estimated 12,000and 16,600residents, respectively, according to data from the Maricopa Association of Governments.
Those districts, represented by councilmembers Patrick HagEstad and Clay Goodman, are home togrowing communities like Verrado and Tartesso.
If Buckeye were to reshape districts to 15,250 residents, districts 6 and 2 would experience the biggest changes, needing to subtract approximately9,700 residents and add 7,200 residents, respectively.
Sometimes, it makes sense for one district to be larger than another— especially when large master-planned communities are involved. Robbins, speaking generally about redistricting, said it's not totally uncommon.
"Let’s say you had a very large community that’s right between two districts and there’s not a reasonable way to split that community in two … you may have a district that’s a little larger than another," he said.
District 2, represented by Councilmember Jeanine Guy, sits on Buckeye's southern edge and includes the city's historic downtown and City Hall.
Spokesperson Annie DeChance said the city has hired a consultant for the redistricting process and will allow residents to give input on the process.
Congressional and legislative districts
Arizona political leaders hoped to add a 10th seat in the U.S. House of Representatives, but the state's population growth wasn't rapid enough to win one.Congressional and statelegislative districts will be redrawn, but the process is different.
While city districts are redrawn to essentially spread people across the city, legislative districts have to "start from scratch," after Arizona voters passed Proposition106 in 2000.
Some state lawmakers during the last redistricting process in 2011voiced concerns about the new map pitting incumbents against each other in party primary elections.
Why some cities aren't redistricting
Phoenix and Surprise residents won't see any changes to their City Council districts this year.
Phoenix officials plan on redistricting over the next two years so the new boundaries will be in place for the 2024 election.
The delay is because of a change in city elections. Phoenix's elections were held in odd-numbered years after the 2010 census, meaning the redistricting had to be done in time for the 2013 election. Phoenix voters in 2018 changed the city's election cycle, moving it to even-numbered years.
Phoenix spokespersonAlejandro Montiel-Cordova said the city in general does its redistricting after the county completes its redistricting. Phoenix code requires the city to redistrict every 10 years after the census, he said.
Surprise Deputy City Manager Diane Arthur said the citywill redistrict in January 2023, after the ballot election coming to Surprise residents this November and after theAugust2022 City Council election.City officials did not want to rushto complete theredistricting process by this January, when candidates can begin filing to run for the council, she said.
Arthur pointed to a state law which says cities cannot redistrict "within six months before" a city election.
Reach reporter Joshua Bowling at jbowling@azcentral.com or 602-444-8138. Follow him on Twitter @MrJoshuaBowling.
Reach reporter Taylor Seely at tseely@arizonarepublic.comor 480-476-6116. Follow her on Twitter@taylorseely95or Instagram @taylor.azc.
