The Sunnyvale City Council will let residents decide whether they want to elect council members by district instead of citywide.
The council voted Tuesday to put a measure on the March 2020 ballot asking voters if they want to amend the city charter to change municipal elections from a system where council members compete at-large for seats on the dais to one where they run in six geographic districts. The mayor, who is currently appointed to the ceremonial post by fellow council members, would be directly elected at large.
The council also selected one of two final maps, referred to as the unity map or map 120D, that establishes geographic boundaries for the six districts. If the charter amendment is approved, the city will hold elections for mayor and council candidates in even-numbered districts in November 2020 and for council candidates in odd-numbered districts in 2022.
Because the 2020 U.S. Census could reflect a different demographic makeup, the boundaries may change for odd-numbered districts by 2022.
“We’re six months away from a new census…I much would’ve preferred doing this after the 2020 election, to actually have better data,” Mayor Larry Klein said. “But we’ve done the best with what we had.”
Although a few council members supported the alternative map, most agreed it and the one chosen were substantially similar. The unity map, which was supported by a coalition of community groups, received six votes, with Councilman Michael Goldman abstaining because he preferred the “cleaner” boundaries in the alternative map.
The council still needs to formally adopt the district map by ordinance at a future meeting.
The city began exploring changes to local elections after receiving a legal challenge under the California Voting Rights Act, a 2002 state law that allows minorities to sue if they can prove an at-large election system dilutes their votes, making it difficult for them to elect minority candidates.
Asian Americans are the largest ethnic subgroup in Sunnyvale, making up 43 percent of the population, followed by Caucasians at 34 percent, Hispanics at 19 percent and African Americans at 2 percent, according to data compiled by National Demographic Corp, a contractor hired by the city.
Many California cities facing such lawsuit threats have adopted district elections immediately through a city council vote. Because Sunnyvale is governed by a charter, the city council considers a voter-approved charter amendment a more prudent legal course than voting to adopt district elections.
If voters don’t pass the charter amendment, the city won’t move to the district-based system, Deputy City Manager Jacqueline Guzman said.
“If it fails, then the city will wait to see what the plaintiffs will do,” she added. “If the plaintiffs decide to sue the city, the city will likely enter into negotiations for a settlement.”
The charter amendment would also prohibit a person from serving three consecutive terms or more than two consecutive terms as either a council member or mayor. Over a 12-year period, for example, a person could serve one term on the city council and two terms as mayor, or two terms on the council and one term as mayor.
The new council district map and other information about the transition to district elections are available on the city website at https://sunnyvaleelections.org/.