GALT, CA (MPG) - Redistricting is on the horizon for the city of Galt and councilors aren’t exactly thrilled about the change. 

The City Council will hold its third public hearing on the matter on Jan. 21, where Paul Mitchell, of the Sacramento-consultant firm Redistricting Partners, will present a set of six maps, one which includes five districts of about 5,000 residents each, and another set of maps that include four districts of 6,000 apiece and allows for a mayor elected by the entirety of the city. 

While councilors said they are curious and hopeful to see what the maps look like come Jan. 21, they remain displeased about having to explore the change or face litigation from an outside law firm. 

“This isn’t coming from within,” Mayor Shawn Farmer said. “If this was someone from Galt filing some lawsuit saying that they don’t think their community is fair…that would be 1,000 times more valid than this.”

The city received a demand letter from the Malibu-based Shenkman & Hughes law firm on behalf of the Southwest Voter Registration Education Project in August claiming that the at-large voting system for the city of about 25,000 people potentially dilutes the ability of Latino voters to elect candidates of their choice or influence an election.

Latinos make up nearly 43% of Galt’s population, according to U.S. Census data. 

The letter, which stands as a primer for a potential lawsuit, claimed the elections violate the California Voting Rights Act of 2001, which attempts to prevent the disenfranchisement of protected classes. Protected classes under the law include voters of a certain race, ethnicity or other languages. The letter gives cities 45 days to respond to the law firm with the intent to switch to district-based elections or face increased legal fees. 

Councilors voiced concern that the law firm didn’t exactly have the voters of Galt’s best interests in mind when filing the letter, nor did it explore the ramifications and complexities of the small town.

“We are being forced to make some kind of decision,” Councilor Mathew Pratton said, or face litigation.

Councilor Bonnie Rodriguez said a town like Galt is too small to be “forced” into district voting and hoped the city could explore another option.

No city or government body has successfully fought a lawsuit challenging the demand letter, and the ones that tried were left with hefty legal bills that Galt city officials say the city couldn’t afford if they wanted to fight the case.

The law allows Shenkman & Hughes to collect upwards of $30,000 for every letter the firm sends and more if a government body opts to challenge the demand. 

In 2013, Shenkman & Hughes took the city of Palmdale to court over the Voting Rights Act. Palmdale lost and had to repay the firm $4.6 million in legal fees. In total, Palmdale taxpayers spent $7 million fighting the case. 

Santa Monica is currently in an eight-year long legal battle that could cost the city millions of dollars. 

Hemet, Wildomar, Upland, Clovis and Costa Mesa, among others, have received demand letters. 

All have moved toward district elections. 

Farmer said on the surface, the change seems like a good idea, but “in reality” he’s concerned the shift could cause more harm to the city in terms of democratic participation. 

“You are going to have no choice, or instead of having a choice of whoever I want to vote for you could be limited to just only voting for one person,” Farmer said. “If someone is running for my district and it’s just the one guy or woman, and I don’t like that candidate, I just might not vote at all.”

“When we are in a day and age where we are trying to encourage more people to vote and how important local voting is, we might have the reverse effect and have people become disenchanted with voting,” he added. 

Pratton said the city already struggles to find candidates to run for City Council and feels that district voting could further highlight the issue. 

“I’m sure we will have districts that won’t have anyone who will run and we will have to appoint people,” Pratton said. “That’s just not a good way of doing it. There are a lot of mandated things nowadays that just aren’t good. But it is what it is.” 

Rodriguez said she’s spent time since the last redistricting conversation looking up Galt’s precinct populations to better understand the decision the city will have to make. She reiterated a point made following Mitchell’s presentation that she’s concerned that if the city moves forward with setting these new maps, they will quickly become unbalanced as hundreds of new homes and potentially thousands of new residents move into new developments, including the Liberty Ranch and Eastview housing developments. 

“Some of those districts, especially those northeast districts, are going to get top-heavy,” Rodriguez said. “It just reconfirms that this is definitely the wrong time to be forcing Galt into a district election process right now. Our population numbers are just not stable right now because of all those homes that are going to be coming online.” 

Farmer said the maps can try to anticipate population growth in a particular district, but “for the most part” that is why the law requires redistricting every 10 years. 

Voting trends were also a concern, Farmer said. 

Even if the districts are balanced in terms of populations, he said it could lead to a situation where a second-place winner in one district is left off the Council, despite having far more votes than the winner of another district. 

“You could have a guy who has 3,500 votes lose a seat to a guy from a different geographic area who got a fraction of the votes,” Farmer said. “It’s going to be very commonplace.”

Elected Mayor or Mayor by Council?

When it’s all said and done, Galt voters could be selecting its first elected mayor since the city’s incorporation in 1946. 

Rodriguez said she is unsold on the idea, but if she had to lean in any direction, she would be in favor of the current system where councilors select a mayor on one-year terms from the elected Council. That mayor then serves as the de facto spokesman for the city and leads city council meetings. 

“Generally those mayors have to run every two years,” Rodriguez said. “You don’t necessarily want to lock a mayor in for four years. The whole point of this lawsuit is to make things more fair for everyone… This is supposedly going to make it easier for all walks of life to be elected, and if that truly is the point then I don’t see having one of these positions be tainted if that is what this is.” 

Pratton said he’s still “up in the air on the idea,” but is leaning in favor of picking from the dais on an annual basis.

He also considered potential cost increases for the city, noting that an elected mayor in most cities carries a more executive tone, and the city may have to explore increasing the salary for the potential mayor-elect. Currently councilors are paid $300 per month, according to Galt’s city code. 

“To run for mayor in Galt? I don’t know,” Pratton said. “I think it’s best to let the city council decide. Everyone may not agree with me on that.” 

A silver lining, Rodriguez said, is councilors do not have to incur the cost of canvasing the entire city, versus smaller districts. 

Farmer said he’s still in favor of an elected mayor who could be responsible for the entire city, if Councilors become beholden to specific districts. 

He added that while he doesn’t believe the council as it stands would compartmentalize its focus, district voting could open the door for it down the line and an elected mayor could help balance the concern. 

Desire for More Feedback 

Every councilor who spoke on the matter said they desired more feedback from the community before finalizing their opinions.

“There is definitely more to see and learn,” Pratton said. 

Following the Dec. 21 meeting, Rodriguez said everyone she spoke to was in favor of the current mayoral selection system, but believes voters and the council alike need more information on the subject before moving in any direction.

She said she hopes the first set of draft maps will give the community the chance to provide more feedback for the council to work with. 

Farmer said he wants to ensure the city does as much outreach for residents to understand the importance of the upcoming public hearings. Farmer said he’d also like to see residents submit their own maps for consideration. 

“I’m going to be pushing this heavy.” Farmer said. “I don’t want this process to be over and for someone to say ‘I didn’t get any info on this.’”

“Unless you were living under a rock in the North Pole, you should know about this.”