G.R. Anderson, Jr. explains how redistricting led to two white women (Marie Hauser and Elizabeth Glidden) facing off in a majority-minority ward.
http://www.citypages.com/databank/26/1297/article13750.asp I think G.R. is on solid ground with his main thesis. I think there was a conscious effort on the part of some redistricting commissioners to add 35 whiter, higher-income Kingfield blocks to the 8th to pull it into Southwest Minneapolis's orbit. The goal was to create a more taxophobic ward, more like the 13th than, say, the 6th. (I don't believe race was a factor propelling the move - however, making minority representation less likely was an inevitable consequence.) That said, I noticed one significant error. The story states that, "the precincts in Kingfield, just two of ten in the ward, boasted 47 percent of the overall voter turnout." That's wrong; the actual share was 24 percent - a much lower figure that undercuts the notion that Kingfield voters swamped the polls. Kingfield precincts (8-6 and 8-7) cast 803 votes out of 3,330 (see http://www.ci.minneapolis.mn.us/elections/2005-Primary-Precinct-Detail.pdf). Their 24 percent this year was actually down from 27.4 percent in the 2004 School Board primary. Another way to look at overrepresentation: compare turnout to voter registration figures. Registration is high because of the 2004 Presidential election, when many non-white and lower-income voters registered. As primary day dawned, the two Kingfield precincts accounted for 22 percent of the ward's registered voters (3,592 of 16,517). On primary day, they cast 24 percent of the votes. Not much overrepresentation there. Kingfield voters did go overwhelmingly for one of their own (Glidden), and that pushed her into the final. But they didn't swamp the polls to do it. Again, redistricting definitely help Glidden because it added those 35 Kingfield blocks - including her own. However, the effect was not as dramatic as some indicate. By the way, you can see the 8th ward boundaries changes here: http://www.ci.minneapolis.mn.us/about/maps/Ward8_06.pdf David Brauer Kingfield REMINDERS: 1. Be civil! Please read the NEW RULES at http://www.e-democracy.org/rules. If you think a member is in violation, contact the list manager at [EMAIL PROTECTED] before continuing it on the list. 2. Don't feed the troll! Ignore obvious flame-bait. For state and national discussions see: http://e-democracy.org/discuss.html For external forums, see: http://e-democracy.org/mninteract ________________________________ Minneapolis Issues Forum - A Civil City-focused Civic Discussion - Mn E-Democracy Post messages to: mailto:[email protected] Subscribe, Un-subscribe, etc. at: http://e-democracy.org/mpls
