Transition to District Elections

On June 16, 2023, the City of Laguna Niguel received a letter (PDF) challenging the City’s current election system and asserting that the City’s at-large election system violates the California Voting Rights Act (CVRA). 

The City of Laguna Niguel is not unique in this situation. Agencies throughout the State have received similar demand letters prompting a shift from at-large to district-based elections. While it is unclear if the City’s current system runs afoul of existing law, the cost of litigation to defend the at-large system, coupled with the track record of other public agencies that have fought similar challenges, poses a significant financial and legal risk to the City. 

In light of the letter and to protect the City from financial and legal risks, Laguna Niguel is taking steps to consider transitioning its election process to district-based elections. To read the City's Official Press Release, please CLICK HERE.  

To read the Mayor Kelly Jennings' official statement on the City's response to the demand to convert to district-based elections, please CLICK HERE or click the image below.

What is districting?

Simply put, districting is the establishment of election districts. It determines who can run and who can vote in each district. Candidates and voters must live within their respective election districts. This does not impact city services to the public. The only change the districting process creates is how City Council Members are elected. 

Districting only happens once. After City Council boundaries are established, the City will conduct redistrictings to balance the district populations following the results of each decennial census, with the next U.S. Census collection being 2030. This ensures that each elected official represents about the same number of constituents. All district lines must be reviewed to meet strict requirements for population equality and voting rights protections in accordance with the Federal Voting Rights Act and the California Elections Code.

Why is district formation important?

District formation determines which neighborhoods and communities are grouped together into a district for purposes of electing a Council Member to represent that district. The formation process provides residents the opportunity to share how you think district boundaries should be drawn to best represent your community.

What criteria is used to determine district lines?

1.   Federal Laws

• Equal Population (based on total population of residents as determined by the most recent Federal decennial Census and adjusted by the State to reassign incarcerated persons to the last known place of residence)
• The Voting Rights Act of 1965
• Prohibits Racial Gerrymandering

2.   California Criteria for Cities 

• The California Voting Rights Act
• The FAIR MAPS Act
• Geographically contiguous 
• Minimize splits of neighborhoods and “communities of interest” 
• Easily identifiable boundaries
• Compact (Do not bypass one group of people to get to a more distant group of people)

Prohibited: drawing lines to favor or discriminate against an incumbent, candidate, or political party

What are Communities of Interest?

A community of interest is a “contiguous population that shares common social and economic interests that should be included within a single district for purposes of its effective and fair representation.” They are the overlapping sets of neighborhoods, networks, and groups that share interests, views, cultures, histories, languages, and values and whose boundaries can be identified on a map. The following elements help define communities of interest:

• Shared interests in schools, housing, community safety, transit, health conditions, land use, environmental conditions, and/or other issues;
• Common social and civic networks, including churches, mosques, temples, homeowner associations, and community centers, and shared use of community spaces, like parks and shopping centers;
• Racial and ethnic compositions, cultural identities, and households that predominantly speak a language other than English;
• Similar socio-economic status, including but not limited to income, home-ownership, and education levels;
• Shared political boundary lines from other jurisdictions, such as school districts, community college districts, and water districts

Who serves as the decision marker in the final City Council District Map?

The City Council is the decision-making authority throughout this entire process. Every map submitted will be reviewed by the City Council. The City Council serves as the ultimate decision maker in the final City Council District Map.