Redistricting Information Sources

At Friday’s (November 19, 2021) Civic Engagement Meeting there was a brief discussion about redistricting, and there appeared to be some interest in the possibility of inviting Brady Walkinshaw, a member of the State Redistricting Commission to join us in January for a discussion of the process, and possibly why the Commission was unable to meet its statutory deadline.
For those of you who may have forgotten your high school civics course, following the decennial census, Congressional seats are reallocated to reflect population changes.  Each state and its subordinate jurisdictions (cities and counties) are also obligated to assess, and when appropriate, change boundary lines for Congressional, Legislative and City and County district seats.  The method of conducting this process varies by state.  Washington State uses a Citizens Commission to perform this task, in other states the matter is left to the State Legislature.
The Washington State Redistricting Commission was unable to reach agreement by the required deadline, and the matter has now been referred to the Washington State Supreme Court.  King County and the City of Seattle each have their own redistricting commissions who are engaged in their own redistricting process.
If you are interested in further information you may find what you’re looking for at the following websites:
Washington State Commission:    https://www.redistricting.wa.gov
King County Commission:                       https://kingcounty.gov/independent/districting.aspx
City of Seattle Commission:                     http://www.seattle.gov/redistricting
NOTE: If you have specific questions you would like addressed if we are able to bring a speaker to the community, please forward them to jimsanders1947@gmail.com.