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Seattle City Council Districts Proposition, Charter Amendment No. 19 (November 2013)
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A charter amendment establishing seven city council districts and two at-large council positions was on the ballot for Seattle voters in King County, Washington. It was approved.
Charter Amendment No. 19 changed the form of the city council from nine at-large positions to seven positions elected according to districts and two at-large positions. The amendment drew up the seven city council districts and established a procedure for redistricting to occur every ten years. In order to phase in the district elections, council members were elected in 2013 to serve two-year terms designed to end on December 31, 2015, the termination date of the four-year terms of the council members elected in 2011. In 2015, two at-large city council members were elected to two-year terms and seven district council members were elected to four-year terms. After 2017, Amendment No. 19 was designed to give all council members four year terms, with the election for the two at-large districts occurring two years after the election for the seven district council members.[1]
Election results
| Seattle, Charter Amendment No. 19 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Result | Votes | Percentage | ||
 Yes | 124,220 | 65.92% | ||
| No | 64,224 | 34.08% | ||
- Election results from King County Elections Office
Text of measure
Ballot question
The following question appeared on the ballot:
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City of Seattle Proposed Charter Amendment No. 19 concerns creating districts to elect seven of nine Seattle City Councilmembers. This measure would require the election of seven City Councilmembers by district and two from the City at-large. Residency must be established 120 days before candidate filing. Every decade a commission would re-draw districts to bring the smallest district’s population within one percent of the largest. Councilmembers elected in 2013 and at-large councilmembers elected in 2015 serve 2-year terms. Thereafter, all councilmembers serve 4-year terms with district positions running together and at-large positions two years later. Should this measure be enacted into law?[2] |
” |
Explanatory statement
The following statement explaning Amendment No. 19 appeared on the ballot:
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The Existing Law: The nine members of the Seattle City Council are currently elected from the city at large. This means that qualified residents of any area within the city are equally eligible for election to any position on the council and that all registered voters in the city may vote for a candidate for all positions up for election. To qualify, a City Council candidate must be a United States citizen, and a registered voter of The City of Seattle at the time of filing his or her declaration of candidacy. Each councilmember is elected to a four-year term. The Effect of the measure if approved: If approved by the voters, the city would be divided into seven districts. One councilmember would be elected from each of the seven districts created in the city, and two councilmembers would be elected from the city at large. Each member elected from a council district must be a resident of that district for at least 120 days at the time of filing his or her declaration of candidacy, and throughout the term of office. To make the change to districts, the five councilmembers elected in the 2011 City Council elections would serve their present terms ending on December 31, 2015, and the four councilmembers elected in the 2013 City Council elections would serve two-year terms also ending on December 31, 2015. In 2015, the two at-large councilmembers would be elected to two-year terms ending on December 31, 2017, and the seven district councilmembers would be elected to four year terms ending on December 31, 2019. Thereafter, all members would be elected to four-year terms. Every ten years, the district boundaries would be re-designated by a five-member Districting Commission composed of two members appointed by the Mayor, two by a two-thirds vote of the City Council, and the fifth appointed by the first four. The first Commission must be appointed by October 31, 2022. The Districting Commission must appoint a master who must draw a districting plan. The population of the largest district cannot exceed the population of the smallest district by more than one percent. To the extent possible, natural boundaries must be taken into account. The Districting Commission must then develop, and approve by majority vote, a districting proposal. After public comment, the Commission must approve a final districting plan, which must be filed with the City Clerk. Upon filing with the City Clerk, the districting plan will become final.[2] |
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Full text
The full text of the resolution calling for this charter amendment election and the full text of the amendment can be read here.
Background
The issue of council members elected by district was brought before city voters three times before Amendment No. 19. The idea was rejected in 1975, 1995 and 2003. The most recent failed proposal, which was rejected in 2003, would have established districts for all nine city council members, instead of leaving two at-large members as Charter Amendment No. 19 did.[3]
Support
Supporters
Seattle Districts Now was behind this initiative charter amendment.[4]
Faye Garneau, a business woman, property owner and philanthropist, provided most of the financial backing for Seattle Districts Now.[5]
Arguments in favor
Supporters of the amendment argued that having districts would allow more precise representation of the people on the city council. They also argued that having districts would open up the city council to a wider range of candidates by making campaigns less expensive and diminishing the advantage enjoyed by encumbents.[1]
David Bloom, a past council candidate and a member of Seattle Districts Now, said, “Right now, even when you correct for multiple voter households, you have to knock on 93,000 doors citywide to reach every likely primary voters [sic]: Under our proposal, you can do the same job by knocking on just over 13,000 doors per district — an achievable goal for a small underfunded campaign."[6]
Official arguments
The following argument in support of Charter Amendment No. 19 was submitted for inclusion in the voters' pamphlet:
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Charter Amendment No. 19 changes the way we elect City Councilmembers from citywide election of nine Councilmembers to seven Councilmembers elected by geographic district and two elected by all Seattle voters. By voting YES, you will have a Councilmember living in, elected by, and responsible for representing your area of Seattle. Currently, no one on the City Council represents your specific neighborhood or community and each Councilmember has to represent 630,000 people. Charter Amendment 19 is important for Seattle because:
NO NEW TAXES are needed for Charter Amendment 19. Join 45,000 of your friends and neighbors who helped place this measure on the ballot. Vote YES on Charter Amendment 19 to ensure elected Councilmembers and future candidates are more closely engaged with you, your neighbors, and your community. Charter Amendment 19 is a good-government proposal with strong bipartisan support, including the Speaker of the House Frank Chopp, the King County Republicans, 46th District Democrats, Senator Adam Kline, Senator Jeanne Kohl-Wells, Senator David Frockt, Senator Sharon Nelson, Senator Maralyn Chase, Representative Gael Tarleton, Representative Mary Lou Dickerson (ret.), Representative Jessyn Farrell, Representative Gerry Pollett, King County Councilmember Rod Dembowski, and thousands of voters just like you.[2] |
” |
| —Seattle Districts Now[1] | ||
Campaign finance
The support campaign, Seattle Districts Now, raised $296,292.03. Most of this money came from loans in the amount of $223,965.47, which were largely provided by Faye Garneau. Cash and in-kind contributions made up $84,861.37 of the committee's war chest, of which Faye Garneau contributed $30,618.08. Seattle Districts Now spent $130,161.46 on signature gathering costs.[7]
Opposition
Opponents
Choices Not Districts was formed to oppose Charter Amendment No. 19.[8]
Arguments against
Official arguments
The following argument in opposition to Charter Amendment No. 19 was submitted for inclusion in the voters' pamphlet:
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CHOICES NOT DISTRICTS Politicians get to serve at large regardless of whether they are elected at large or by district. It is only We the People who have our jurisdiction restricted by districting. In comparing the city and county councils, the King County Council is also comprised of nine members, and all nine have jurisdiction over you as a resident of this county, yet you are prohibited from participating in eight of their nine elections because the King County Council is elected by districts. BUT CURRENTLY, NO ONE CAN RUN FOR CITY COUNCIL WHO IS BEYOND YOUR REACH AS A VOTER. Let’s keep it that way! Districting also causes elections in which incumbents run unopposed: e.g. in 2009, 4 of the 5 districts electing someone to the King County Council had no challenger: only the incumbent's name on the ballot. City council members should be accountable to all of us. Districts pit the interests of one geographic area against the others rather than addressing the common good. We need to elect the best qualified candidates who will work for the common good, regardless of where they live in the city! The districting advocates' argument is that geography trumps freedom of choice. Their argument is that you are better off to have to vote for someone you may not like who lives in your district than to have the freedom of choice to vote for the candidates of your choice regardless of where they live in town. Just because someone lives in your part of town doesn't mean that he/she shares your political ideologies. And city council members are under oath to represent the entire city, not just their neighborhood. For neighborhood politics you should go to your neighborhood councils. This is why we have neighborhood councils. If Charter Amendment 19 passes, in the future most city council candidates will be off limits to you: beyond your reach as a voter. Protect your choices: Vote NO on Charter Amendment 19. Note: A wealthy Seattle business person financed the districting campaign by paying for signature-gatherers to collect the necessary signatures to put districts on the ballot. Don't let money dupe you into forfeiting your choice of candidates.[2] |
” |
| —Choices Not Districts[1] | ||
Campaign finance
The opposition campaign, Choices Not Districts, received $7,485.10 in contributions.[9]
Path to the ballot
In mid-June 2013, members of Seattle Districts Now turned in 46,633 signatures to the city clerk. Of the submitted signatures, more than the required 30,943—15 percent of the votes cast for mayor in the preceding mayoral election—were found to be valid, forcing the city council to put the amendment on the ballot.[6][10]
Signature gathering costs
Seattle Districts Now spent $130,161.46 on signature gathering costs. This amounted to a cost of $2.79 per signatures gathered.[6][7]
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms Seattle city council districts Charter Amendment 19. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
- Seattle, Washington
- Seattle, Washington municipal elections, 2015
- Local election and voting laws on the ballot
- Local elections and campaigns on the ballot
- King County, Washington ballot measures
- November 5, 2013 ballot measures in Washington
External links
Support
Opposition
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 King County Elections Office, "City of Seattle Proposed Charter Amendment No. 19," accessed OCtober 28, 2015
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ The Stranger, "What Have We Got to Lose?" October 3, 2012
- ↑ Seattle Districts Now, "Home," accessed October 28, 2015
- ↑ Seattle Times, "‘Feisty’ Faye Garneau shifts city power with council-district win," November 11, 2013
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 Seattle Pi, "Initiative to elect Seattle City Council by districts will likely make ballot," June 11, 2013
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Washington Public Disclosure Commission, "Contributions for Seattle Districts Now Sponsored by Faye Garneau," accessed October 28, 2015
- ↑ Choices Not Districts, "Home," accessed October 28, 2015
- ↑ Washington Public Disclosure Commission, "Contributions for Choices Not Districts," accessed October 28, 2015
- ↑ The Stranger, "Campaign for District Elections Will Finally Begin Circulating Petitions," January 30, 2013
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