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<br /> What kinds of districts do you have: Do you have the How did your use of electoral
<br /> mere residency districts or true districts come about?
<br /> N electoral districts? necessary power? The presumptive method of elections is
<br /> The North Carolina statutes for cities If your jurisdiction has single-member or at large. For most of North Carolina's
<br /> �. and counties permit three types of dis- blended districts, you must consider modern history,nearly all the members
<br /> tricts, with very different redistricting redistricting.As discussed later,you may of city councils,county commissions,and
<br /> consequences.' not have to redistrict.That will depend school boards were elected that way.
<br /> 1 .- Residency districts.In the first type of on the relative population changes Beginning in the 1980s,however,there
<br /> district, candidates must reside in among your districts since 1990. But if was a movement away from at-large
<br /> the district from which they wish to run, you must redistrict, do you have the elections to elections by districts,spurred
<br /> Fi but all the voters of the jurisdiction vote authority to do so? The answer to that primarily by the need to comply with the
<br /> for that seat.This type is commonly re- question generally is yes. The General federal Voting Rights Act of 1965(again, z
<br /> ferred to as a"residency district."As with Assembly has passed special boundary- discussed in more detail later). Today, :
<br /> at-large voting (of which this is a vari- revision statutes for cities,counties,and 103 jurisdictions use single-member or 09
<br /> ant),there is no requirement to redistrict school systems,4 but in any jurisdiction's blended districts and so are subject to
<br /> after the 2000 census?In fact,for coun- particular situation, the answer may redistricting(see Table 1,page 4).
<br /> ties a statutory provision requires a local turn on how the use of electoral districts There are three ways in which elec- o
<br /> act of the General Assembly to change (and the current actual boundaries) toral districts may have come into use V
<br /> residency-district boundaries.3 came about. for a city or a county,but only two ways z
<br /> Single-member districts.In the second for a school system. First, the General
<br /> � type of district,candidates must reside in ,., Assembly may have moved a city,a coun-
<br /> IPA
<br /> M the district from which they wish to run, " �" ty,or a school system from at-large elec-
<br /> L and only the voters of the district can '- ,� tions to district elections through a local
<br /> vote for that seat.Commonly referred to act. The General Assembly passes two
<br /> as a "single-member district," this is the - kinds of acts,public and local.A public
<br /> 4 type to which the greatest redistricting _ , " i ^r act applies to the entire state generally,
<br /> attention must be paid after the 2000 cen- and it is the most common kind of enact-
<br /> sus. The trend in recent years has been ment. About 90 percent of bills intro-
<br /> for jurisdictions to move from at-large r duced in any session of the General
<br /> elections to single-member districts. It Assembly are public bills.' A local act
<br /> has been spurred,as discussed later,by a applies only to one or more named cities,
<br /> drive to create districts that provide mi- counties, or other units of government.
<br /> nority populations with greater opportu- North Carolina's Constitution places '
<br /> nities to elect candidates of their choice. _ some limitations on the subjects that
<br /> Blended districts. The third type of
<br /> district is a variant of residency districts.
<br /> In this type the candidate must reside in
<br /> the district from which he or she wishes
<br /> to run,and all the voters of the jurisdic- A .WT# F
<br /> tion vote for that seat in the general elec-
<br /> tion,just as in regular residency districts. ,,,,,
<br /> In this third type,however,in the prima-
<br /> ry election,only the voters of the district ,.,_
<br /> vote. So this type of district resembles a 1 �+'` v„ rr
<br /> single-member district in the primary
<br /> election and an at-large arrangement in +
<br /> the general election. This type requires
<br /> the same attention after the 2000 census
<br /> that the single-member district does. Y �-
<br /> If the election of your board members s -
<br /> is from residency districts, you do not
<br /> have to redistrict, and you may stop
<br /> reading this article. If, however, you
<br /> have single-member or blended districts,
<br /> you should go on to the next question. -
<br /> POPULAR GOVERNMENT SPRING ZOO1 3
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