VIRGINIA BEACH — A proposal to create 10 new local voting districts for Virginia Beach could lead to messy politics here because it would place some incumbent local officials — particularly on the School Board — in the same district as their elected colleagues.
As part of ongoing litigation, a federal judge is considering a plan to create a new district system for local voting that would involve more districts and new political subdivisions within the city. The lawsuit that spurred the changes deals only with City Council, however, and a proposed remedy generally avoids pairing incumbents. But the plan may cause uncertainty for School Board members, a majority of whom could wind up in the same district as colleagues because their residencies have not been a consideration in the case.
A voting rights expert appointed by U.S. District Judge Raymond A. Jackson submitted a plan to the court that would create 10 residency districts, sometimes called wards, to replace a unique, controversial mix of district and at-large seats the city has used. Only voters living within the districts would determine who represents them, unlike the current system, in which people living outside districts help decide district representation. The mayor, elected citywide, would remain the 11th member of the council.
If the judge adopts the proposal submitted by the expert, the School Board could face three instances of incumbents who could be placed in districts with their colleagues, court records and interviews show. Three proposed voting districts could contain the residencies of eight current elected School Board members, according to maps offered in a plan submitted by Dr. Bernard Grofman, a voting rights expert acting as a special master in the case.
Two possible districts include two incumbents each, but another includes four School Board members – Dottie Holtz, Laura Hughes, Vicky Manning and Carolyn Weems. Hughes, Manning and Weems sometimes vote together in the minority.
“I think it absolutely would be unfortunate to have all of us in the same district,” Manning said during an interview on Monday, Dec. 6. “For the public to lose that voice would be unfortunate.”
Manning said the board has had discussions about issues related to the case, but its members are waiting to see what the judge decides before determining the next step.
Weems on Thursday, Dec. 9, said she found it “interesting” like-minded School Board members ended up in the same proposed district, but they have little control over it. She, too, awaits a decision.
“I think it’s just a big mess,” she said.
In comparison, there is only one apparent City Council conflict shown on the maps Grofman created based upon input from the parties, population numbers and other data, as well as the need to create three minority opportunity districts.
The plan would place City Councilmembers Guy Tower and Linwood Branch in the same district, though this seems due to Branch’s recent appointment to the council following the resignation of former Vice Mayor Jim Wood.
[View a PDF version of the map at this link.]
Virginia Beach has for decades employed an unusual mix of seven district seats and “at-large” seats in which all city voters vote in all council and School Board elections, even if they lived outside a district. That will soon change due to the federal voting rights suit and new state law.
Earlier this year, Jackson found the city uses an illegal local voting system that denies minorities the opportunity to select candidates of their choice and ordered the city to stop using it. Again, the lawsuit by plaintiffs Latasha Holloway and Georgia Allen focuses only on City Council elections and, in its proposed remedies, the council’s current office holders.
This matters because the political boundaries of elected School Board offices mirror those of the council under the City Charter.
“We don’t know for sure how it’s going to effect us yet,” said School Board Member Beverly Anderson, who holds an at-large seat – and may be placed in the same district as Board Chairperson Carolyn Rye, who represents the Lynnhaven District.
“We’re still trying to figure that out,” Anderson said. “We’re kind of in limbo right now. We’re waiting, just like City Council is. … The quandary is that we have so many of our people who are sharing [proposed] districts.”
Rye previously told The Independent News that concerns related to the board include how an 11-member body will be selected from a 10-district system. City Council and School Board elections are supposed to be similar in how they operate. The office of the mayor is a key difference.
Under the present system, there are seven district representatives on the council and School Board. On the council, there are an additional three at-large seats, meaning candidates can live anywhere in the city, and the office of the mayor.
In addition to seven district seats, the School Board has four at-large seats. Unlike the mayor, who is directly elected, the School Board chairperson is selected by fellow members of the board and not directly by the voters.
This is the cause of uncertainty about how an 11th seat might be elected in the likely new system. Local elections are less than a year away.
On Thursday, Dec. 9, Rye said the School Board began focusing on the litigation this summer when it became apparent new districts would result.
“Once the judge rules, then it is time for the School Board to assess where it goes from there,” Rye said.
Several members of the School Board told The Independent News there have been discussions with legal counsel about possible results and approaches to possible issues, though they declined to discuss conversations held in closed sessions.
Generally speaking, the School Board has considered possibly working with the General Assembly to resolve any issues that result from a new system. Jackson is expected to issue an order in the coming weeks, and an appeal by the city, now on hold, is expected to follow.
“We’ve been discussing it, talking about it, but we haven’t come up with a plan and said, ‘Let’s do that one,’” said School Board Member Trenace Riggs, who presently represents the Centerville District.
If the judge adopts the special master’s plan, Riggs could be paired in a new district with School Board Vice Chairperson Kim Melnyk.
Melnyk represents the Princess Anne District, an area of the southern city that roughly corresponds with the main coverage area of The Independent News. Council and School Board seats in the district are scheduled to be up for election in 2022, but the Centerville District currently is not scheduled to be up until 2024.
Under the special master’s proposal, Melnyk would now reside in a new district that somewhat corresponds to the boundaries of the Princess Anne District, but the possible new boundaries mean Riggs would reside just within that district.
“It’s just a shame it’s all fallen this way,” Riggs said on Monday, Dec. 6, adding that the result may be unfair to constituents. “They’re the ones who voted us in to have representation.”
“At this point, we don’t know anything yet, and we’re just waiting for Judge Jackson’s decision,” Melnyk said during a telephone interview on Tuesday, Dec. 7. “We will move forward once he rules.”
Among the issues the court could address before making a ruling is the placement of Branch and Tower in the same district. In a response to the special master’s plan, lawyers for the city asked the court to do so.
On Tuesday, Nov. 16, the city noted in a filing that Grofman sought to avoid pairing incumbents in the same districts.
“But, in fact, the plan pairs two incumbents, Guy Tower and Linwood Branch, in District 6,” the city filing says. “This appears to be due to the recent changes in personnel on the council.”
The city asks the court to tell the special master to determine whether the pairing can be avoided.
During recent interviews, Branch and Tower said they are awaiting the court’s final decision and focusing on their work.
“Obviously, I got appointed about two months ago, and this was already a work in progress,” said Branch, the Lynnhaven District representative. “It is what it is. Right now, I’m occupied with just a lot of city issues. It’s certainly a different situation that Guy and I have compared to other council members, but in life some things are beyond our control. Guy and I are working on a number of issues, and that’s really what we’re focused on.”
Tower, who represents the Beach District, said resolving any issues is up to the court.
“The judge seems to be on track to make a decision,” Tower said. “I’m just kind of waiting until that’s done.”
City Councilmember John Moss, who holds an at-large seat, said the possible new district system creates a number of challenges for the School Board, including district pairings and, potentially, when seats are scheduled to be up for election.
Speaking on Monday, Dec. 6, Moss noted that the judge had asked parties in the suit to respond to the filings about the special master’s plan.
Those responses were due to the court on Tuesday, Dec. 7.
“What you’re seeing is what it could be,” Moss said regarding the proposal by the special master.
“I think it’s going to be an interesting time,” Moss added.
Previous coverage of the case and related matters is online at this link. Do you have thoughts or questions about the changing system? Email jhd@princessanneindycom.
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