Term limits loom large in redistricting

This story appeared in the Antelope Valley Press April 7, 2001.

By LISA WAHLA
Valley Press Staff Writer

Term limits will make the messy, political and often litigated process of redistricting even messier and more political this time around, according to one expert.

Redrawing the political maps after each U.S. Census is always difficult. Sacramento legislators must balance the desires of special interest groups, minority organizations and powerful politicians as they re-balance districts' populations after a decade's growth.

Then throw term limits into the mix, with career-minded politicos eyeing their next move when they cannot run for their current seats.

"In the past, the Assembly took care of the Assembly (redistricting) plan and the Senate took care of the Senate plan," said UCLA law professor Daniel Lowenstein, a redistricting expert. "It was a fairly orderly process. It's much larger now - they have to be concerned about which other offices they can run for. Now they have a much more difficult political situation."

Lowenstein, who has written extensively on court cases resulting from redistricting squabbles, said term limits will be the biggest issue facing California mapmakers this summer.

The impact already is noticeable in the Antelope Valley, where Sen. William J. "Pete" Knight and Assemblyman George Runner will term out in 2004 and 2002, respectively.

State Assembly members are limited to three two-year terms and senators must give up their seats after two four-year stints after limits were approved by voters in 1990 and upheld by the state Supreme Court in 1991. U.S. Congressional members face no such limits.

Runner announced last month he will run for state Senate, but he doesn't know for which district - or even when.

If a new Antelope Valley district includes Runner's hometown of Lancaster and Knight's hometown of Palmdale, Runner will wait until Knight's term ends in 2004. But if the Valley's main cities are split into two senate districts, Runner could make a bid in 2002.

Making the situation more difficult, new district maps might not be put out for consideration until late spring or early fall. That leaves a short window before the March 2002 primary for potential campaigners.

As for Knight, the Air Force hero is considering running for a seat on the state Board of Equalization, which sets tax policy. Again, he doesn't know yet which district's seat he'd be pursuing.

What is certain is that every political district containing the Antelope Valley will shrink. The Valley's exceptional growth has helped its congressional, Senate and Assembly districts outpace the rest of the state's, so thousands of people must be shifted into other districts.

The new Census figures place California's population at 33.8 million, so the 80 assembly districts should each contain about 423,000 people after redistricting. The 36th District, which covers most of the Antelope and Santa Clarita valleys, has grown to 473,000 and must be trimmed by nearly 12%.

Mapmakers will try to formulate senate districts with about 847,000 residents; Knight's 17th District has about 905,000. Nationwide, Congress members will represent 639,000 people. The 25th District seat, held by Santa Clarita Republican Howard P. "Buck" McKeon, covers close to 700,000 people.

The same rules apply to Los Angeles County, which grew to 9.5 million: Each district should have 1.9 million after redistricting. The 5th District, which includes the Antelope Valley, grew to 1,969,000, and thus should be shrunk by about 65,000 people.

Few potential maps have been circulated yet for public review. One that has gained attention, though, would remake the county districts, putting the San Fernando, Santa Clarita and Antelope valleys together with Burbank and Glendale. Those valleys have common interests, said map-drawer Alan Clayton of the Chicano Employees Association.

Clayton's plan keeps mostly intact Gloria Molina's 76% Latino 1st District and Yvonne Brathwaite Burke's 2nd District. It creates a San Gabriel Valley seat and a coastal district combining much of the 4th District with current 3rd District territory from Santa Monica to Malibu.