The four voting members of the Washington State Redistricting Commission each released a proposed map Sept. 20 for the redrawing of the state’s legislative districts that could change who represents Snoqualmie Valley residents in Olympia.
Every decade, the legislative and congressional districts are redrawn following the census to create districts that better reflect how the population has changed. The goal is to create districts that represent similar communities and groups while keeping each district roughly the same size and not giving any political party an unfair advantage.
“The commission looks forward to hearing the public’s feedback on these proposals,” said commission chair Sarah Augustine. “Now is the time for residents of Washington to let us know what they like and don’t like in the proposals put forth today.”
The commission will host a public meeting for those who wish to comment on the maps at 7 p.m. Oct. 5 over Zoom. State residents will also be able to comment on any of the proposed maps online. After comments are taken, three of the four voting members of the commission must agree on two finalized versions of the maps by midnight on Nov. 15, before they are sent to the state Legislature for approval.
Each legislative district sends two representatives and one senator to the state Legislature in Olympia. Snoqualmie, North Bend and Fall City all currently fall within the 5th Legislative District, and are represented by three Democrats. However, that could change after the new map is created because several proposed maps move part, or all, of the Valley cities into the 13th Legislative District, which is represented by three Republicans.
The current 5th Legislative District includes much of eastern King County, including the Snoqualmie Valley, Issaquah, Renton and Maple Valley. The district stretches all the way to Snoqualmie Pass on its eastern border. From north to south, it stretches from King County’s northern border almost to Enumclaw.
The commission, which is split among two Democrats and two Republicans, is aiming for each of the state’s 49 districts to have a roughly equal population of 157,251 people. The 5th District currently has a population of 161,143 and will have to shrink.
April Sims, the House Democratic appointee and secretary treasurer of the Washington State Labor Council, has the least drastic change of the 5th District, shrinking the district vertically and making its northern border just past Carnation.
The Senate Democratic appointee, a former state legislator and the current CEO of Grist Magazine, Brady Pinero Walkinshaw, proposed keeping the 5th District similar while adding Sammamish and Duvall, and moving North Bend and a section of Snoqualmie to the neighboring 13th District.
Paul Graves, the Republican House appointee and former state representative, proposed moving the entire Snoqualmie Valley into a lengthy 13th District, which would stretch to Spokane County.
Joe Fain, the Republican Senate appointee, Bellevue Chamber of Commerce president and former state senator, proposed a smaller 5th District that would encompass Issaquah and most of the Valley, excluding Carnation.
After the maps were released, the chairs of both state parties criticized the other for gerrymandering. Caleb Heimlich, the chair of the state Republican Party, called the Democratic proposed districts “political hackery,” arguing that the districts need to be made competitive.
Tina Podlodowski,the chair of the state Democratic Party, argued that the Republican proposed districts are not pursuing competitiveness, but are gerrymandering, saying “the GOP commissioners should go back to the drawing board and try producing maps that respect the law.”
Democrats currently control the House and the Senate in Olympia, with a 57-41 majority in the House and a 29-20 majority in the Senate. The commission is expected to release proposed changes to the congressional maps on Sept. 28 (after press time).
To view the proposed maps, or leave a comment, visit: bit.ly/3EM2ivs.
