Redistricting respondents seek rural representation
 
By JIM SECKLER
Mohave Daily News
 
KINGMAN — Almost 200 participants turned in questionnaires in Mohave County’s plan to expand the supervisor districts from three to five districts.

The county is in the process of redrawing the boundaries lines in time for the 2012 elections as required by the 2010 census showing the county with a population of more than 200,000. The plan is to make the districts equal to each other, with no district having a 10 percent difference in population.

District maps are being drawn up from the input from recent public meetings and questionnaires that is being sent this week to the consultants assisting the county’s election department. A second round of public meetings will be held in July. More people attended public meetings held in Colorado City and Beaver Dam than in Bullhead City and Lake Havasu City, county voter coordinator Betty Vernon said.

Map options will be presented to the county supervisors in August for approval. The plans will then be submitted to the federal Department of Justice in September. The project is required to be completed by Dec. 1.

There were 193 responses to the questionnaires sent in. Many of the comments dealt with representation of rural residents. About 17 percent of the responses came from Bullhead City. Some Mohave Valley residents wanted their own supervisor, possibly representing from southern Bullhead City to northern Lake Havasu City.

Since the county now exceeds 200,000 people, candidates running for supervisor will not need as many signatures to run for a seat on the board. Many more candidates may be on the ballot than in the past. In 2008, there were 10,020 registered Democrats and 12,156 registered Republicans in supervisor District 2. Candidates used to need a minimum of 2 percent of the registered voters or 201 Democrat signatures and 244 Republican signatures. Now a candidate only needs one half of 1 percent or about a quarter of the number of signatures required, Election Director Allen Tempert said.

The Mohave County Elections Department’s Web site has 2010 census information including population by district, supervisor district, cities and towns. The 2010 census puts the county’s population at 200,186. Also on the Web site is a map of Mohave Community College’s five districts.

Besides changing to five supervisor districts, the county will also change MCC’s boundaries, the justice of the peace districts and the Western Arizona Vocation Education’s Joint Technical Education District. Those districts already have five districts.
 
MohaveDailyNews.com
Originally published Friday, June 10, 2011
 
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