Vote 'yes' on Prop. 11

In the 2006 election not a single incumbent in the California legislature lost. For those districts where there was no incumbent, not a single seat changed parties. This is not an anomaly, but instead is the expected result given that the legislature defines district boundaries to protect those holding office. My own Assembly District 66 stretches from Mira Loma to Pine Valley, a distance of 140 miles. Yet for a considerable distance the district width is only about 10 miles. This is not a district designed for governance or representation of the constituents but one intended to maintain political party control of that district. Other districts are similarly drawn to keep the other political party in power.

Proposition 11 will take redistricting power away from the legislature and place it in the hands of a bipartisan group of interested voters, five Democrats, five Republicans and four independents. They will be instructed to define districts that maintain communities of interest and are geographically compact. Senate Districts will consist of two adjacent Assembly Districts. Those supporting Proposition 11 include the League of Women Voters and the California Taxpayers Association. Those opposed include the major political parties and special interests that depend on the current legislature to promote their agendas.

If you think our current legislature is effective, vote against 11. If you think the common good is more important than protecting political parties, take away their gerrymandering power by voting for Proposition 11.

Jim Dooley