After six public discussions, San Clemente’s City Council has approved a map that breaks the city up into four election districts.
But some residents were so unhappy with some of the map boundaries that another discussion is already in the works for the council to make more changes.
The council voted to approve the new map on Nov. 7, but during that same meeting, they called for staff to return with two more maps for consideration at a future meeting.
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What To Do About The Pier Bowl?
The concern is mainly about a section of the city known as the Pier Bowl. It gets its name from the natural topographical “bowl” and includes the San Clemente Pier. The public beach trail also runs through the base of the bowl.
Residents said the approved map would split up this section of the city that should be kept together.
Council members agreed.
“I have seen so many emails and comments saying that this is not the right map. I think I’ve seen two in support,” Councilmember Mark Enmeier said during the meeting. “So many are in disagreement. I think we need to do ourselves a favor and listen to our citizens and their recommendations.”
“We can adjust these lines to fit more in accordance with what the citizens think is appropriate for our city,” he continued.
The council voted 3-2 on Nov. 7 to approve the district map that will transition the city from at-large to by-district elections. Enmeier and Mayor Chris Duncan voted against the map.
The vote also created a three-term limit for the mayor, meaning mayors can serve for a maximum of six years.
But even before that vote council, members knew changes still needed to be made.
City staff is expected to bring adjusted maps for council consideration at the Dec. 5 meeting.
Most speakers during the public comment portion of the meeting criticized the boundary lines on the adopted map, titled Map 109.
“It doesn’t make any sense when there’s many other maps like 102, 110 and 111 that have almost all or all of the historic downtown core in one district,” San Clemente resident Bruce Jamieson said during the meeting. “And these people have a commonality of issues like coastal erosion, homelessness issues (and) aging infrastructure.”
In June, the city received a letter from attorney Michelle R. Jackson asserting that the city’s at-large election system violates the California Voting Rights Act and dilutes the ability of Latino residents to elect candidates of their choice.
The city is adopting a map to change its at-large system for electing city council members to a district-based system to avoid litigation.
Cities across the county and state have also made the change voluntarily after receiving legal threats and accusations that at-large voting systems disenfranchise minority voters.
Orange County cities like Anaheim, Fullerton and Mission Viejo made the switch after becoming entangled in voting rights lawsuits. Irvine also recently considered a switch to districts.
How Do Election Districts Work?
In a district election system, voters only get to pick one candidate that’s running in the district they live in. Everyone gets to vote for the mayor in that system.
In the city’s current at-large system, residents get to vote for all the open seats. For example, if three seats are up for election, voters in an at-large election system get to vote for three candidates.
While Councilmember Victor Cabral agreed that the split through the Pier Bowl was a mistake, he still thought it was important to pass the ordinance to avoid further litigation.
“The only flaw that I see is that little part of the Pier Bowl, and I think that’s something that can be fixed,” Cabral said at the meeting. “We would have to do that at a later date, and not tonight, just so that we get the protection of the state (California Voting Rights Act) and not expose ourselves to millions of dollars of legal fees.”
Duncan sided with residents, saying he’d rather take more time and get the map right.
“I’m not inclined to rush to approve a map that has so many errors regardless of the chance to redress it later,” he said. “I would have preferred if the council decided to ask for more time.”
Angelina Hicks is a Voice of OC Tracy Wood Reporting Fellow. Contact her at ahicks@voiceofoc.org or on Twitter @angelinahicks13.
