Redistricting in California: Control or Democracy?

Steve,

Do us all a favor and please join some other party. Those of us who are Democrats believe in a Democratic agenda -- and the way to get it is to win elections.

You've embraced an initiative which lists as its purpose "preventing the majority party from controlling redistricting."

You want to create a 14-member redistricting commission that under-represents Democrats. It hands over 5 seats to republicans -- more than their share of voter registration -- and 4 seats to independents -- more than their share of voter registration.

You think it's easy for Democrats to hold and build their majority? If you do, it's because -- unlike Cavala -- you've been watching from the sidelines. Years of experience have taught him something you've failed to learn -- it takes every tool we have to hold and build a Democratic majority. That's why the Republicans want this so bad -- and why the smart Democrats are saying NO.

I think Gray would support any initiative that stripped the Legislatue of any authority.

Westlye may be sincere - or compiling press plaudits for his next run. But can he beat Jerry?
(who defeated him for Party Chair).

It's galling for "reform" proponents to pretend their proposal is neutral. The only completely neutral way to draw districts would be to have a computer design them using a random starting point and a random walk program. Whenever you introduce any factor other than total randomness, including the factors contained in the proposed reform, you are privileging some at the expense of others. And even a random-walk design would not be "fair"; it would simply be random in terms of who it was unfair to.

Since no one would ever agree to a random-walk program (because they could not foresee whose interests would suffer), the battle is not between fairness and unfairness, nor between "democracy" and "control," as the article suggests. It is simply a battle as to whose interests will prevail. In the end, you can't take the politics out of politics.

Dear "Please change your registration":

At least I have the courage to post using my real name, instead of hiding behind a string of words. It's anonymous attacks like yours that turn off so many people to politics, the very people we need to reach in order to maintain and increase our majority.

You obviously don't know the hard work I've done for the Santa Clara County Democratic Party, helping turn the 14th CD (nee the 12th) from red to blue, making Santa Clara County (at least for a while) a Republican-free zone, or producing our public access television show DTV for 13 years.

I'm sure you've worked hard too, but to post your accomplishments you'd have to come out into the open, and I guess that's just not your style.

Hmmm. That DTV link is supposed to point to http://www.sccdp.org/dtv.php, but for some reason it didn't take. The one in this comment does work, however. I apologize for the inconvenience.

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