Res 17-055RESOLUTION NO. 17-055
RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF
POWAY, CALIFORNIA, ADOPTING LINE DRAWING
CRITERIA FOR ESTABLISHING COUNCIL DISTRICT
BOUNDARIES
WHEREAS, the City Council of the City of Poway ("City") was elected under an
"at large" election system whereby Councilmembers were elected by voters of the entire
C ity;
WHEREAS, the City Council is considering a change to the "by district' elections
whereby each Councilmember must reside within the designated district boundary and
is elected only by voters of that district;
WHEREAS, the Federal Voting Rights Act (42 U.S.C. Section 1973) prohibits the
use of any voting qualification, or prerequisite to voting, or standard practice or
procedure in a manner which results in a denial or abridgement of the right of any
citizen of the United States to vote on account of race or color;
WHEREAS, federal law and the equal protection clause require that each district
be equal in population to ensure compliance with the 'one person, one vote" rule;
however, deviations approximating five to ten percent may pass muster under the equal
protection clause where required to meet an official criteria; and
WHEREAS, the City Council has instructed its demographer and city staff to
develop draft maps that fully comply with legal requirements and intends to provide
official criteria for any needed deviations.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the City Council of the City of Poway
as follows:
Section 1. The City Council of the City of Poway does hereby adopt the
following criteria to guide the establishment of districts for council elections (each, a
"Council District'):
1. Each Council District shall contain a nearly equal number of inhabitants;
2. Council District borders shall be drawn in a manner that complies with the
Federal Voting Rights Act;
3. Council Districts shall consist of contiguous territory in as compact form as
possible;
4. Council Districts shall respect communities of interest as much as possible;
Resolution No. 17-055
Page 2
5. Council District borders shall follow visible natural and man-made
geographical and topographical features as much as possible; and
6. If the Council is so inclined, Council District borders may respect the previous
choices of voters by avoiding the creation of head-to-head contests between
Councilmembers previously elected by the voters, insofar as this does not
conflict with Federal or State Law.
PASSED, ADOPTED AND APPROVED by the City Council of the City of Poway,
California, at a regular meeting this 1st day of August 2017.
Steve Vaus, Mayor
ATTEST:
Nac_ n'cy P Id, CMC, City Clerk
STATE OF CALIFORNIA )
) SS
COUNTY OF SAN DIEGO )
I, Nancy Neufeld, City Clerk of the City of Poway, California, do hereby certify
under penalty of perjury that the foregoing Resolution No. 17-055 was duly adopted by
the City Council at a meeting of said City Council held on the 1st day of August 2017,
and that it was so adopted by the following vote:
AYES: CUNNINGHAM, GROSCH, MULLIN, LEONARD, VAUS
NOES: NONE
ABSENT: NONE
DISQUALIFIED: NONE
y�N cy eufel MC, City Clerk
City of Poway