Digital News Report – The city of Watsonville and the County of Santa Cruz will both be altering their district boundaries following the 2010 census results.
The County of Santa Cruz will be readjusting their five districts while Watsonville will make changes to their seven city districts. Every ten years, states, counties and cities are required to use census data to redistrict.
Watsonville will be holding a meeting on the subject on September 13th at 6:30 pm. Residents can review the current plans before the meeting at the City Hall.
The population of the county as a whole increased 2.7 percent since the 2000 census. That is an increase of 6,782 residents.
The cities and county must abide by state and federal rules when redistricting. The United States Voting Rights Act requires populations to be nearly equal and allow minorities to be fairly represented.
Topography and community interests may also play a role.
The deadline for redistricting is November 1st 2011.
By: Greg Cook