Copyright © 2022 Albuquerque Journal
Albuquerque’s citizen redistricting committee is slated to take its final vote Wednesday, deciding what it thinks is the best way to reshape the city’s political boundaries for the next 10 years.
The committee – made up of a voting member and alternate from each of the city’s nine existing City Council districts – has been exploring potential maps for months. Its ultimate charge is to recommend at least one option to the City Council, which will have the final say on which map the city adopts.
There are eight draft maps in front of the redistricting committee currently. It will on Wednesday rate each concept on a four-point scale before voting on one – or multiple options – to recommend.
The council, which is on hiatus in July, will likely make its decision this fall, though it does not have to heed the committee’s advice. It can accept the recommendation, amend it or choose to do something altogether different.
The city undergoes redistricting after each U.S. Census. The 2020 count showed uneven population growth since 2010, meaning Albuquerque’s current council districts must be adjusted to ensure residents across the city have the same level of political voice. Specifically, the city’s far northwest council district now has 16% more people than what would be ideal if the city were divided equally among all nine districts, while a few districts east of the river have too few people to meet legal requirements.
The committee is still taking public input, both online and during Wednesday’s meeting, which it will conduct via Zoom starting at 5:30 p.m.
For more information and to view the maps, go online to cabq.gov/2022redistricting.
