It’s an exciting time in our City as we begin the process of moving towards district elections. In fact, at the next general election, Goleta residents will vote for Councilmembers by district vs. the current at-large method. Community input will be a huge part of creating the district lines of four new Council districts within the City (the Mayor will continue to be elected “at-large” by all registered voters of the City).

The reason behind the switch to a district elections format is that the City Council adopted a resolution of intent to implement district elections by November 2022 as part of a Conditional Settlement Agreement entered into on May 16, 2017. To help facilitate the process, the City has entered into a contract with National Demographics Corporation (NDC) to provide the City with demographic analysis of census data, drawing of draft maps for proposed boundaries of districts, public outreach, professional advice, and interactive web tools related to the 2022 Electoral Districting Process. At the most recent Public Engagement Commission on February 17, 2021, the Commissioners received a presentation from City staff and NDC as a formal kickoff of the 2022 Electoral Districting Process. Read the full staff report and presentation at https://tinyurl.com/icbta061, and watch a video of the meeting here.

Please stay tuned for more information on this important process and how you can participate. This topic will be discussed again at the next Public Engagement Commission meeting on April 21, 2021, at 6:00 p.m. Sign up here to receive meeting updates.