Last Chance for Asians to Join Redistricting Commission - NAM

Last Chance for Asians to Join Redistricting Commission - NAM

Apply for the Commission Online—December 15, 2009 through February 16, 2010.Learn about the general application and selection process and timeline. You can apply by clicking on the icon to the right:

Over the next week, ordinary California voters have an unprecedented opportunity to affect political elections in the state for the next 10 years. But as the days tick away, California’s Asian American community is in danger of having its voices shut out.

February 16 is the last day for applications to California’s new Citizens Redistricting Commission--a body that will have sweeping powers over the way state legislative and Board of Equalization district lines are drawn for the next 10 years. In other words, this commission of 14 ordinary Californians—5 Democrats, 5 Republicans, and 4 independents or voters from other parties—will shape California’s political future.

What’s the big deal? Well…here’s what’s at stake. The district lines that are drawn could significantly affect election results for the next 10 years. In the past, states like Texas have redrawn the lines so that a majority of the residents in a single district hail from one party. As a result, in those districts there is no real competition in elections—which ultimately decreases the power of individual voters.

In California, state legislative boundaries used to be drawn by lawmakers, but when voters passed Proposition 11 (the Voters FIRST Act) in the November 2008 general election, that responsibility transferred to the people. Unfortunately right now, there is a great danger that this commission will not be truly representative of the people in this state.

A truly representative redistricting commission is one that should look like California. In order to accurately reflect California’s voter demographics, it would mean that at least one of the 14 citizens redistricting commission members would be Asian American. But so far, applications do not come close to representing the diversity of California’s voters. More than 74 percent of the 7,681 registered voters who have applied are non-Hispanic whites. If nothing is done to change this, it could mean that no one from the Asian American community will be a member of this commission.

Asian American voices made a difference in the San Gabriel Valley. Prior to 1990, Asian American communities were divided up between three different Assembly districts, diminishing their ability to make a difference in any one district. Then, Asian Americans got involved in the redistricting process, and those communities were put into one district, greatly improving the ability for Asian Americans to make a difference in the political arena.

Having a greater voice in the decisions of America is critical in so many ways, and the consequences of being left out are devastating. During the 2000 Census, an estimated 1 percent of Asian/Pacific Islanders were left out in Los Angeles County alone—which ended up costing the community hundreds of millions of dollars in lost federal funding. Now, with less than 70 days before Census Day 2010 on April 1, organizations like the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) and the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights (LCCR) are gearing up to ensure we do not see a repeat of the year 2000 undercount. With our communities facing some of the toughest times in decades, we