2021 Long Beach Independent Redistricting Commission Adopts Final Map for New Council District Boundaries
Long Beach, CA – On Thursday, November 18, the Long Beach Independent Redistricting Commission (Commission) voted to adopt the final map for the new Long Beach City Council district boundaries. The new district boundaries approved by the Commission will take effect in 30 days on December 18, 2021. The new map can be found on the Redistricting website.
“I am very proud of the map this inaugural Independent Redistricting Commission created. With no roadmap, numerous obstacles, and immense public input to balance, we were able to create districts that are fair and representative of this wonderful city,” said Commission Chair Alejandra Gutierrez. “Our commission committed itself to uphold a transparent process and ethically came to a unanimous decision to adopt a map that unifies previously split neighborhoods, preserves the cohesion of communities of interest, and most importantly, will allow the residents of Long Beach to elevate and elect candidates of choice for the next ten years. I am truly grateful to the public who helped us complete this historic and monumental task.”
After receiving 772 Communities of Interest (COI) form submissions, over 16 hours of public comment, 90 COI map submissions, and 110 partial and full district plan map submissions from community members via a Citywide effort to obtain community feedback, the Commission was able to reflect the current interests of the community to determine new City Council district boundaries with fair and equal representation in each district, in compliance with the City Charter criteria.
The Commission held meetings from June 2021 to November 2021, virtually and in person, to gather testimony from community members to help inform their decisions on where district boundaries should be drawn.
In addition to adopting the final map, the Commission adopted a written report that justifies the new City Council district boundaries that have been drawn. The Commission also authorized the Long Beach City Clerk to make any necessary adjustments to implement the boundaries.
Next steps for the Commission within the next 60 days are to provide the City Council with a written report on procedural recommendations on how to improve the next redistricting process in 10 years.
Long Beach voters approved Measure DDD in 2018, creating and granting a commission independent of the Mayor and City Council authority to redraw Council district boundaries. The Commissioners were seated on November 20, 2020, to be part of this inaugural Commission, responsible for drawing new City Council district boundaries with fair and equal representation across the City using the results of the 2020 Census population count.
For additional information about the Commission or to sign up to receive email notifications and updates, visit longbeach.gov/redistricting.
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