Lincoln Co. moving to 13th District

Sue Lani Madsen, architect, rancher, writer and political activist from Edwall had this to say about the new boundaries of Washington’s legislative districts:

Lincoln County has been moved to the 13th Legislative District, joining most of Grant County and all of Kittitas in a district stretching from the Spokane County line to Snoqualmie Pass with each county in a different Congressional District. Kind of looks like a salamander. It will be an interesting district to work with for the next ten years.

Still thinking about what kind of printable quote I might like to send y'all about this development. I've followed every Commission meeting since they finally turned their attention to eastern Washington in mid-December, although the first serious maps only came out just over a week ago. It was a frustrating process to watch as they pushed the completion date close and closer to the deadline.

It could be worse; the first map they took to a vote on December 28 had the north half of the county in the 7th and the south half tacked onto the 13th. Splitting Lincoln County along Highway 2 would have split four out of the seven incorporated towns in the county roughly in half, along with the respective school and fire districts that define our rural communities. At least as a whole county we are not quite such a little tail on our new legislative district, and maybe this tail can wag the dog occasionally.

The Redistricting Commission’s press release follows below:

The four voting members of the Washington State Redistricting Commission have unanimously approved the final version of the Washington State Redistricting Plan. The Final Plan and supporting documents can be viewed by visiting the Commission’s website at http://www.redistricting.wa.gov. The final report to the Legislature will be published January 9, 2012.

The content of the Final Report is established in statute and is meant to provide the Legislature with the information needed to analyze the details of the Commission’s plan. The Legislature has 30 days, beginning the first day of the 2012 Regular Session, to review and make any changes to the final plan. The Legislature can make changes to no more than two percent of the population of any given district and must approve these changes with a two-thirds vote of both houses. After the 30-day review period has passed, with or without Legislative action, the Final Plan becomes law.

After the legislative review period, Redistricting Commission staff will post the final version of the Redistricting Plan on the website and create a map of Washington’s Congressional and legislative districts to be used for the next ten years. County Auditors from across the state as well as members of the public have been integral to the Commission’s process, identifying technical issues with the draft plan and recommending solutions in advance of adoption. County Auditors have the responsibility of implementing the boundary lines established by this plan for the 2012 Primary and General Elections.

Washington voters established the Washington State Redistricting Commission in 1983 to ensure voting boundaries are established through a fair and bipartisan process. The Commission includes two Democrats and two Republicans as voting members and a non-voting, nonpartisan chair. Lura Powell, from Richland, serves as the Commission chair. Democratic appointees to the Commission are Tim Ceis, Seattle and Dean Foster, Olympia. Republican members are former U.S. Sen. Slade Gorton, Bellevue and Tom Huff, Gig Harbor.

Redistricting Commission website: http://www.redistricting.wa.gov Census Bureau: http://2010.census.gov/2010census/data/