Continuing a December conversation about redistricting, the Macon County Board of Commissioners voted to hold a public hearing in February on changing how commissioners are elected.
During the board’s Dec. 9 meeting it approved a resolution in favor of redistricting to send to the general assembly, the idea being it would then pass a bill to give the county permission to concoct and implement its own redistricting plan. The measure passed 4-1, with chair Josh Young voting against.
According to county attorney Eric Ridenour, legislature staff requested the county instead put together a specific plan to be voted on by the assembly, at which point the plan would simply become law and it would become the county’s responsibility to implement.
Commissioner John Shearl, who requested the original resolution in December, moved to pass a resolution to have two of the three seats representing District 2 (Iotla, Millshoal, Union, Smithbridge and all Franklin districts) to become at-large so any county resident from any district could run for those seats. District 1 covers Highlands, Ellijay, Flats and Sugarfork. District 3 includes Burningtown, Cartoogechaye, Cowee and Nantahala.
“As I stated before, the process here is unfair to District 1 voters, citizens and potential candidates for office and also District 3,” Shearl said. “If you live in District 2, you can seek office every two years. If you live in District 1 or District 3 you can seek office every four years.”
“There’s someone in District 3 that would love to run for office. You don’t have the opportunity to because District 3 is taken care of. And so that person, by the time that the District 3 representative serves out this person may be aged out to where they don’t want to serve anymore,” he said.
Ridenour said a ballot resolution may not be the way commissioners want to go on redistricting, since it would reduce the number of options on electoral systems voters could choose from.
“If you wanted to still have, make sure you had representation of the three primary areas in Macon County – Highlands, Franklin and Nantahala – but still allow people to run every two years, this is the form by which that would work,” he said.
Young said, “I do think it’s broke. I really feel like I have the opportunity to run every two years and if somebody lives 10 miles up the road from me, they have to wait every four years. But I feel like what I’d like to see is a very well-thought-out, a very detailed plan showing how the terms are going to be staggered.”
Young said he would like to see a version of the proposal where the at-large seats are filled together every other election cycle. For example, the District 1, 2 and 3 seats could be filled in the presidential election year, and the two at-large seats would be filled in the next election cycle. Young also said he wants to hold a public hearing on the proposal.
“I think that’s kind of where I’m hung up,” Young said. “The concept is great, but I’d like to see this on paper. Maybe we bring Melanie [Thibault] up from the Board of Elections and we have a really detailed plan; I think that would really help me. But I do feel like it’s the right move.”
The remaining commissioners agreed it would be best to hold a public hearing before moving forward with the plan, given the General Assembly would still have time to approve the plan by April if it is received before March. Shearl withdrew his original motion and the board voted unanimously to hold a public hearing on Feb. 10.