The Santa Maria City Council will hold a special meeting on Thursday, March 30, for a public hearing on proposed voting districts, as part of the city’s recent decision to move to district-based elections.
Currently, Santa Maria uses an at-large election system, in which the candidates who receive the most votes win the seats on City Council, regardless of where those candidates reside in the jurisdiction. On Feb. 21, the council voted 3-2 to move to a district election system. This would split Santa Maria into voting districts, where each district would have its own candidate for City Council.
Those in favor of the change argue that district-based elections promote a representative democracy.
“They reduce the amount of money for political campaigns, allowing more grassroots, everyday people to run for office without major financial backing,” Hazel Davalos, community organizer for the Central Coast Alliance United for a Sustainable Economy, said at the council’s Feb. 21 meeting.
Now, the city has to decide how to split up its districts for the next election, and the City Council is calling on its constituents to pitch ideas. It held its first public hearing on March 7, where suggestions included the potential creation of five voting districts for council members and one at-large election for mayor.
Thursday’s hearing will take place at 5:30 p.m. at the Veterans Memorial Building, and members of the public are invited to bring proposed district maps and ideas.
This article appears in Mar 30 – Apr 6, 2017.