This map of proposed Johnson County Council districts is on the table today during a special Johnson County Board of Commissioners meeting.
SUBMITTED MAPS
New county council districts are expected to be finalized today, and either option before the commissioners would create more balanced districts.
The Johnson County Board of Commissioners has two redistricting proposals to consider. Commissioner Brian Baird submitted a proposal on behalf of the county. Baird created the redistricting map with help from Indianapolis Law Firm Kroger Gardis and Regas, which the commissioners hired to guide them through the process and help them prepare a map with more equal populations across the districts. Amanda Stevenson-Holmes and Josh King, the chair and vice-chair of Johnson County Democratic Party, respectively, submitted a map as well.
Either of the proposed maps would provide more equal boundaries than the one approved late last year, before the deadline was extended due to pandemic-related Census delays.
The ideal population for each of the four single-member county council districts is 40,441, representing one-fourth of the county’s 161,765 residents each.
The county’s initial map had unbalanced districts, with the most populous district at 45,610, and the least populous at 37,706. The districts are, respectively, 12% greater than the mean and 7% less than the mean. Figuring those together, the total deviation is more than 19%.
The county’s proposal has a population of 40,280 in District 1, 40,107 in District 2, 41,153 in District 3 and 40,225 in District 4. If the proposal is approved, the deviation would be zero, which signals balanced districts.
The proposal submitted by Stevenson-Holmes and King has a population of 39,038 in District 1, 41,675 in District 2, 41,708 in District 3 and 39,344 in District 4. It has a 6.6% deviation.
“I am pleased with the work that we have completed with the assistance of our professional consultants. We appreciate the contributions made by the public as well, and I believe we will have a compliant solution for Johnson County at Tuesday’s meeting,” Baird said in an email.
Local redistricting restarted last month, after Stevenson-Holmes and King challenged the county’s map. The commissioners at the time said they were left with little choice but to approve the unbalanced districts due to the time crunch created by circumstances outside of their control.
“The last federal Census was in 2020, but as a result of COVID-19 and other delaying factors, the Johnson County commissioners did not receive Johnson County’s precinct establishment order from the State of Indiana until December 20, 2021, only 11 days before the final statutory deadline under Section 36-2-3-4 of the Indiana Code. As a result of Johnson County’s significant growth over the last decade, the county council districts drawn after the previous 2010 federal census were no longer viable,” the three-member board said in a statement. “In other words, the commissioners were obligated to redraw the county council district maps and boundaries. The full redistricting process that provides the opportunity for public input and comment, however, takes several weeks, and it was therefore impossible for the commissioners to commence and conclude that process between Dec. 20 and Dec. 31, especially given the Christmas and New Year’s Eve holidays in that time frame.”
The public can view the proposals at the commissioner’s office in the West County Annex and may submit comments on the proposal by 9:30 a.m. Tuesday, or attend the meeting at 10 a.m. to speak on the proposals.
The deadline to file to run for county council or withdraw candidacy is noon Friday. The deadlines were extended to make sure candidates have ample time to ensure they are registered to run for the seat where they reside.
