Eastward expansion: Manatee wants to keep community character in redistricting
Several thousand new residents have flocked to eastern Manatee County in the past decade, which will require a balancing act — and significant modifications — during the county’s redistricting process.
An independent consultant spoke with the Board of County Commissioners on Tuesday to brief them on his initial findings. John Guthrie, the Florida Senate’s former staff director of redistricting, said the rapid growth out east must be leveled out by shrinking those districts.
“What we see is what I think you already know,” Guthrie told board members. “The population in Manatee has grown mostly in the east. What that means is that in order to equalize population, the districts in the western portion of the county ... will need to gain population by expanding toward the east.”
Based on data from the 2020 U.S. Census, Commissioners James Satcher and Vanessa Baugh have seen the population in their districts jump significantly higher than their fellow board members. While Districts 1 and 5 are home to an average of around 94,000 residents, the other three districts are home to about 73,000 residents each.
The goal in redistricting is to balance the county’s five single-member districts to include roughly the same number of residents. These districts determine which board member represents residents in county government. Five board members are elected based on those districts, while two at-large commissioners are elected countywide.
According to Florida state statutes, drawing new district lines must occur in an odd year, such as 2021 or 2023, using the latest Census data available. Commissioners met in August for their first discussion about the redistricting process, which must be completed by the end of December if they plan to adjust the maps this year.
During their earlier meeting, County Administrator Scott Hopes walked the board members through an exercise that invited officials to draw their own maps based on what they think would make sense with the latest population data. Hopes explained that those were not official maps and that the sole purpose of that exercise was to highlight how difficult the process is.
“Even though most of us drive through the county frequently and see where the houses are, until you get into the analytics with the GIS software, you really don’t know how close or how far you are from getting equitable populations,” Hopes said, referring to the special technology the county purchased to aid in the redistricting effort.
Keeping the five districts equitable while maintaining each of their unique qualities was the chief concern for commissioners and residents at Tuesday’s work session. Even though new lines have to be drawn, both groups agreed that districts should maintain their character.
District 2 hopes to maintain minority representation
Commissioner Reggie Bellamy and residents of District 2, urged the board to retain the area’s minority representation. There are federal guidelines in place that are meant to prevent a redistricting process from having negative impacts on a minority community’s ability to elect representatives.
“The elephant in the room is to make sure we have representation of a population and we keep certain districts where they are,” said Bellamy, the only Black representative and Democrat on the board.
Major changes to District 2, which includes Manatee’s urban core of Bradenton, Palmetto and Ellenton, could “dilute” the population, residents told commissioners.
“District 2 has the highest minority population and any changes that significantly change the dynamic of this district will certainly dilute the population,” said Susie Copeland, who spoke on behalf of the Manatee County’s NAACP chapter. “Your process should be transparent, fair, non-partisan and with citizens engaged in that process.”
“When I say we’re concerned about redistricting, please don’t take it lightly. This is one of the most important issues before you,” said Lynette Edwards, a social action representative for the Delta Sigma Theta sorority’s Bradenton Alumnae Chapter. “We urge you not to rush this process or overlook people while you make this decision.”
In a statement provided to the Bradenton Herald, Manatee County’s Democratic Party made similar demands, calling on officials to keep the redistricting process open to the public, study any impact on minority communities and encourage public outreach.
“Do not silence the will and the voice of voters by denying this county fair representation on this commission. This process can only work if all commissioners are willing to make tough decisions that lead to creating a fair map,” the statement said. “We know this process is not easy, and the end result requires compromise.”
What happens next in Manatee redistricting process?
As a consultant, Guthrie said he would prefer to have Hopes be his direct line of contact for the county’s needs, but commissioners disagreed with that recommendation. They said they wanted directed access to Guthrie, especially if it meant the ability to provide additional information for his map ideas.
“I am 100% going to try to influence Mr. Guthrie. Let me make that clear,” Commissioner Kevin Van Ostenbridge said, noting that it’s ultimately the board’s job to approve the new district boundaries. “My top concern as we’re redistricting is keeping the coastline together and keeping that environmental area intact. My next concern is making sure none of y’all get drawn out of your districts. Outside of that, I really don’t care that much. I’m concerned about District 3, and I want it to look the way I want it to look.”
“I am going to make sure that I do my best to make sure we maintain District 2 and try to influence (Mr. Guthrie) to make sure District 2 is not drawn out and District 2 is put in a situation where we continue to have that representation,” Bellamy added.
While some commissioners pushed to have their finger on the pulse of the maps, others said they would prefer to allow Guthrie to create a few maps and discuss them with the board before they weigh in with their own recommendations.
“I personally wanted to see a consultant come in because I think we need to make sure it’s done in an honest and unbiased way,” Commissioner Vanessa Baugh said. “If we leave it up to our consultant, we will have a place to start that might work. I don’t think it’s fair that anyone has an issue with that because we don’t have anything to look at yet.”
Board members said they would prefer to host a special meeting on Wed., Oct. 27, to discuss Guthrie’s preliminary maps that should be available by that time. In the meantime, Baugh urged her fellow commissioners to continue having discussions with residents about what boundary changes they want to see.
“We have a tough job in front of us, and we have to do it quickly,” Baugh said.
This story was originally published October 20, 2021 at 11:39 AM.
