It may come as a surprise to many Californians, but redistricting is upon us. And while Proposition 20 extended the authority of the non-partisan redistricting commission to include Congressional, State Senate and Assembly districts, cities and counties are still on their own.

Often times, redistricting devolves into vicious party-line battles as politicians fight to ensure the future security of their districts. 

Over the last ten years, districts have grown and shrunk, demographics have shifted, and the vitriol of the political discourse have driven people to switch party allegiances. Surely, this year’s local redistricting has the potential to echo years past.

Contra Costa County has had those fights in the past. So this year, as the Board begins to prepare for their redistricting, they’ll keep an eye on the lessons of a decade ago.

From the Contra Costa Times:

Continued population growth in East Contra Costa County and Dougherty Valley will again drive the mandatory decennial redrawing of the county’s five supervisorial districts.

Cities within Districts 5 and 3, represented by Federal Glover, of Pittsburg, and Mary Piepho, of Discovery Bay, respectively, have grown disproportionately faster than those of their three colleagues. Five of the six towns with growth rates since 2000 of more than 10 percent are in these two districts.

Every decade, after the release of the decennial census, every public entity governed by elected representatives must redraw their boundaries in order to comply with the constitutional requirement of “one person, one vote.”

Read the full article here.