Legislative district map OK as is
BOISE – The state Supreme Court on Wednesday dismissed a challenge to how Idaho’s legislative districts are drawn, ruling the existing district map created in 2002 assures residents of their constitutional “one person, one vote” right.
The battle had pitted southern and eastern Idaho counties, including Bonneville and Teton, against the northern part of the state, including Kootenai County.
Counties who filed the lawsuit against Secretary of State Ben Ysursa claimed the redistricting plan drawn up three years ago by the Idaho Commission for Reapportionment gave Idaho’s northernmost counties 1.6 more state lawmakers than their populations merited.
In a 15-page unanimous ruling, however, the five-judge panel ruled the opponents failed to demonstrate how some regions had an unfair advantage at the expense of others.
“The record is devoid of any evidence tending to show that the commission intentionally favored one region to the detriment of another,” wrote Justice Jim Jones, for the majority. “We hold (the plan) is not unconstitutional.”
Officials in Ysursa’s office said they had expected the decision.
Even so, they’re relieved: It keeps Idaho from being forced to redraw districts for a fourth time in four years. Prior to the 2002 plan, two redistricting efforts had been ruled unconstitutional.
Had the court thrown the latest plan out, “you’d have to go through the whole process again,” said Tim Hurst, chief deputy secretary of state. “Once every 10 years is adequate.”
Petitioners who had wanted the justices to reconvene the commission said they’re disappointed and believe North Idaho has more than its rightful representation.
Still, they said the court has helped clear up contentious issues well in time for the next redistricting push due to take place after the 2010 U.S. Census.
“If there’s any success in this, I think we succeeded in interpreting a number of troublesome questions,” said Roger Christensen, a Bonneville County commissioner in Idaho Falls. “Hopefully, it will improve the process.”
Christensen and other critics of the existing plan argued that 10 of 11 North Idaho election districts have fewer than the 36,970 people the state uses as a benchmark for districting, giving that region so-called “hidden representatives.”
The Supreme Court’s ruling, however, found “no evidence of an intent to underpopulate the northern districts to affect the amount of districts in any particular area.”
Each district is allotted two state representatives and one state senator.
Kootenai County includes four districts; three are entirely contained within the county, and a fourth includes parts of Kootenai County and Benewah, Bonner and Shoshone counties.
Those behind the lawsuit argued dividing things up this way violated constitutional requirements that counties not be split “unless it is necessary to meet the standards of equal protection.”
The justices disagreed.
“If Kootenai County were not split into three-plus districts, some other county would have to be split so that the other county didn’t have all its districts wholly contained within it,” Justice Jones wrote. “We simply cannot micromanage all the difficult steps the (reapportionment commission) must take in performing the high-wire act that is legislative district drawing.”