As published yesterday by the Bethesda Beat, the redistricting commission revealed three possible maps for seven new County Council districts. The maps can be viewed below or at the Redistricting Commission website. Redistricting could have tremendous impacts on how East County is represented at the County Council. Earlier this year, I published an opinion piece explaining why East County deserves its own district, and how it has suffered from a lack of strong, continuous representation on the Council over the past dozen years.
East County needs a councilmember to fight for a piece of the pie
If East County had its own council district (separate from Silver Spring, Takoma Park, or Wheaton), we could be represented by a councilmember that is specifically focused on the needs of our community and can fight for an equitable share of county and state resources.
Historically, East County has received less public and private investment than the rest of the county, as evidenced by the charts below, which I developed in preparation of the FY 2021 Montgomery County Capital Improvements Program Public Forum hosted by the East County Citizens Advisory Board on September 14, 2020.
Data disclaimer: data were obtained from the county budget website, which lists the regional service center (RSC) for each capital project (note that the county does not always list the correct RSC for each project, and the data below does not include county-wide projects). The data analysis was performed over a year ago, so it may not be up to date. Anyone wishing to view the latest numbers can visit the Office of Management and Budget website to see CIP projects grouped by regional service center.
What do the proposed maps look like?
East County does not have enough people to support its own district, so it would need to be grouped with an adjoining community to meet the legal requirements of having similar voting-age population to the other six districts.
Two of the three maps would establish an East County council district that is separate from downtown Silver Spring. The third map is similar to the current East County council district, which extends into Four Corners, Takoma Park, and downtown Silver Spring (DTSS).
Map 1, drafted by Commissioner David Stein, would group East County with Leisure World, Bel Pre, and Kemp Mill into a single district. Of the seven districts proposed in Map 1, East County would have the largest percentage of non-white voters (~75%) and largest percentage of Black voters (37%, a plurality).
Map 2, developed by Commissioner Jason Makstein, would group East County with Leisure World, Norbeck/Norwood, Sandy Spring, Ashton, the eastern half of Olney, and parts of Brookeville and Brighton. Of the seven districts proposed in Map 2, East County would be paired with a district in Wheaton/Aspen Hill for the largest percentage of non-white voters (~70%). Similar to Map 1, the East County district would have the largest percentage of Black voters (36%, a plurality).
Use the slider below to compare Maps 1 and 2.
Map 3 would group East County with almost everything east of US 29, extending to the border with Washington, DC. The East County district would include Woodmoor, Four Corners, Franklin Knolls, Montgomery Knolls, Long Branch, part of downtown Silver Spring, and most of Takoma Park.
How do the district maps affect minority representation?
Montgomery County has been a “majority-minority” jurisdiction for over a decade, meaning that less than half the population identifies as non-Hispanic white. All three of the proposed maps have six majority-minority districts and one majority-white district (Bethesda, Potomac, Chevy Chase). For all three map options, the East County district has a Black plurality.
The demographics of each map option are presented below.
What can you do to get involved?
The commission will vote on these maps next Wednesday (October 20), and submit recommendations to the County Council . You can write an email to the commissioners or submit a comment by visiting the Redistricting website.
The County Council will have final approval on the redistricting maps, so you are also encouraged to email, call, or tweet the councilmembers with your thoughts!
Hi Sebastian… nice work! Don’t feel bad about getting ignored by our current CM, I get same treatment! In all 3 maps, Four Corners gets divided between DTSS, East Region (2 or 3), and/or Wheaton/Aspen Hill (2 of 3). I think designated TPB “Activity Centers” and County “Urban Areas” should not be divided (Four Corners fall into these designations). Your opinion? Where do you think Four Corners belongs? In your opinion what map is best for East County? Why?