Public input needed in June 5 redistricting meeting

In an effort to increase awareness and public participation in the congressional and legislative redistricting process, the Washington State Redistricting Commission will hold a virtual meeting from 1 to 3 p.m. Saturday, June 5. The meeting will focus on Washington’s First Congressional District, which includes legislative districts in Whatcom, Skagit, Snohomish and parts of King County.

The meetings will be available to all members of the public via Zoom, YouTube and TVW, and anyone who wants to comment during the public comment period can register online before 3 p.m. Friday, June 4.

Redistricting is the process of redrawing, or creating new, district boundaries to adjust for population changes since 2011. The U.S. and state constitutions require each congressional and legislative district represent roughly the same number of voters, and keeping that balance requires tweaking and changing political subdivisions as demographics shift.

For Congress, the number of representatives is limited to 435 to be distributed across all 50 states, according to the most recent census. For the Washington legislature, the number is limited to 98 representatives from 49 districts.

Since some states and communities grow faster than others, redistricting is necessary to make sure the number of congressional seats for each state represents the population of the country. For example, the 2020 Census shows that Texas, Florida, Montana, North Carolina, Oregon and Utah will all gain a seat (with Texas gaining two) in next year’s Congress.

The redistricting commission has been operating throughout the state since its inception in 1983 when voters approved Constitutional Amendment 74, establishing an independent commission to redistrict legislative and congressional districts every decade.

The commission said on its website it will host 20 or more public forums from May to August across the state in order to “listen to your ideas and proposals about current and future Congressional and legislative district boundaries.”

The commission is encouraging residents to send comments and insight about their community, share testimonials during public outreach meetings, and to even draw their community with the “DRAW YOUR WA” mapping tool.