[Mpls] Don Samuels and 2005

[Greg Abbott]

To be fair to Don Samuels, this special election is a unique fiasco brought to us by the city's decision to have the contest in the old boundaries AFTER the new boundaries have been created. I am astonished that a resident or prospective candidate in the new 3rd ward has not sued the city to force the special election to occur in the new boundaries. We know for a indisputable fact (by virtue of the 2000 census) that the old 3rd ward boundaries violate the constitutional requirement of one person-one vote. Holding an election using the 1990 boundaries after the 2000 redistricting has been completed is an appalling breach of good public policy and constitutional principles.

The prospect of divided interests between neighborhoods, as pointed out by Loki Anderson, is another reason why having an election in the old boundaries AFTER the new boundaries have been drawn is an incredibly bad idea.

Of course, if the special 3rd ward election has to occur within the new boundaries, it follows that special elections are needed in the other 12 wards as well to conform to their new boundaries. In my judgment, the city's decision to have the special 3rd ward election in the old boundaries is motivated by the desire to avoid special elections in all 13 wards - a politically expedient action taken at the expense of the principle of one person-one vote.

Nonetheless, I think voters are entitled to know how the candidates intend to approach the conflict in interest created by the use of the new boundaries in the 2005 election. This question should be posed to all candidates, not just Don Samuels.

An agnostic approach to 2005 is not fair to the voters. Redistricting is not an unknown hypothetical - it is an actual fact, with known boundaries. Elected officials are held accountable, in part, by the prospect of facing the voters again if they seek re-election. Before they grant someone the power of incumbency in the 2005 election, the voters need to know where the candidates intend to land.

Greg Abbott


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Greg Abbott
Linden Hills
13th Ward

http://www.gregabbott.org

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