Measure D, a bid to establish city council districts in the City of Irvine, appears headed for victory.
Courtesy OC Registrar
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OCVote.gov
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If that lead continues, Irvine will disband its “at-large” method of electing city council members, and council members will be elected only by the voters in their own districts, instead of by all voters in Irvine.
How we got here
Previously, residents in all of Irvine could vote for as many candidates as there were open seats. For example, if there were four open council seats, residents could vote for four candidates, regardless of what neighborhood they or the council member lives in.
If Measure D continues on its path to victory, Irvine voters will add two more members to the four-member city council (for a total of six members) and adopt a map that will divide the city into six corresponding city council districts.
The new council will include the mayor and the six council members: The mayor will remain an at-large position chosen by all voters in Irvine and will still vote on issues that come before the city council.
The conversion to “district elections” has been a trend underway in California for years. Voting rights groups have pressed cities to adopt district elections as a way to ensure more diversity on their city councils.
Irvine, with a population of more than 309,000, is the currently largest California city without…
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