Update, noon Nov. 18: The maps are released. More here.
Today, Thursday, Nov. 18, at noon, the DC Council’s Subcommittee on Redistricting will publicly release its final map proposal, which rebalances the District’s population among the eight wards and reflects new proposed ward boundaries.
A vote by the subcommittee on the map and accompanying legislation will take place on Friday, Nov. 19, at 3 p.m.
The District’s Charter fixes the number of wards at eight. The DC Code dictates that the city’s population must be apportioned equally (one person, one vote) among the wards, with no more than a 5 percent deviation permitted. Dividing the city’s 2020 population (689,545) by eight yields 86,193. To be legal, a redistricting plan must limit the population of each ward to between 81,883 and 90,504.
“This proposal is the culmination of months of discussion and public debate, including 11 hearings, 150 witnesses, 40 hours of testimony, and 220 map submissions from D.C. residents,” said At-Large Councilmember Elissa Silverman (I) who Chairs the Subcommittee. “I truly believe this map not only meets the legal requirement of equal representation, but advances racial and economic diversity in the District while safeguarding the voting strength of Black residents.”
The map will be publicly posted on Thursday at noon at elissasilverman.com/redistricting and will be available on the District’s redistricting mapping tool, dcredistricting.esriemcs.com. The Subcommittee’s report explaining the reasoning behind the map will be released as well.
At the beginning of the year, D.C. Council Chairman Phil Mendelson appointed a redistricting subcommittee to engage the public and present a proposal to the full Council for consideration. The subcommittee is composed of Silverman, along with at-large councilmembers Anita Bonds (D) and Christina Henderson (I).
“We’ve tried to make this process as transparent, inclusive, and accessible as possible,” said Silverman. “We’ve made D.C. residents a part of the committee’s decision-making not only through testimony but by having them help us draw the maps and weigh the options. I look forward to the Subcommittee unanimously approving the proposal on Friday.”
Draft redistricting maps were released for public comment Nov. 1, each chosen from the more than 130 maps created by residents using the District’s online mapping tool. In each, a portion of Ward 6 is shown as redistricted into Ward 7.
Any redistricting plan has to earn a majority on the three-member committee and then on the 13-member DC Council. Subcommittee Chair Elissa Silverman (At-Large-I) has stated her intention to forge a solution worthy of support from a majority of her colleagues.
Learn more about the process of redistricting, get maps and key dates on the redistricting website established by At-Large Councilmember Elissa Silverman.
