Big changes proposed for California's District One

[Auggie]

Napa Valley Register / 6-5-2011

Napa’s Congressman Mike Thompson could find himself running in a substantially new district if the first draft of maps in California’s redistricting process hold up.

Members of the 14-person Citizens Redistricting Commission issued preliminary “visualizations” last week of what California’s Assembly, state Senate and Congressional districts might look like for the next decade.

The new district lines are not official — or even draft — maps, but staff renderings incorporating the commission’s discussions and public testimony up to this point.

Though they are an early step in the process, the visualizations will form the basis of the direction given to the commission’s line-drawer next week, making them the best approximation of what new districts might look like when drafts are released Friday.

MORE: http://napavalleyregister.com/news/local/article_e7540b3a-8f30-11e0-8b83-001cc4c03286.html

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Wine industry efforts to keep the North Coast Appellation united are falling on deaf ears -- this drives a stake right through it. And The Central Valley couldn't be more different than Napa Valley.

District One would still skew Democratic but with less of a majority. And the North Coast wine industry loses some clout in Washington, something Blue Dog Mike Thompson has represented fairly well.

Smells "barnyard" to me...

[XemaSab]

1. I can't find a link with the preliminary map

Anyone else have any luck?

http://wedrawthelines.ca.gov/

[Auggie]

3. Here's one for north of San Francisco

http://www.watchsonomacounty.com/2011/06/featured-articles/redistricting-commission-issues-preliminary-maps/

[XemaSab]

4. Ooooh... interesting

I dunno if I think putting Marin in the same district as the rest of the North Coast is such a good idea. There's a different income bracket down there, and a different outlook on life. For example, logging is a massive, massive industry from Mendo to Del Norte, but in the Bay Area they don't go for that sort of thing.

I dunno what kind of politics you'd get having Santa Rosa, Sutter, and Glenn in the same district.

The Northeast district (I suppose it would be the new fighting second) looks reasonable. I've thought it was odd that Siskiyou and Modoc were split up previously.

I'd love to get a look at the rest of the state. :D

Thanks for posting this. :D

[Auggie]

5. Looks to me like they're creating two districts that will be more polarized...

Marin's addition counter's Napa & Santa Rosa's loss for the coast, no? I've always thought north of Mendocino voted conservative.

I think both will stay Democratic under this proposal.

[XemaSab]

7. Humboldt is VERY liberal but Del Norte is conservative

I'm certain that the district will remain in strongly Democratic hands, I'm just concerned that Bay Area issues and politics will dominate the concerns of the district.

(Full disclosure: I have lived in both Marin and Humboldt. I love them both, but it's a different mentality north of the Marin/Sonoma line. I noticed that a lot of the commenters said they were glad there would be less Bay Area in their politics. :P )

[adds76355]

2. very interesting

[AlanCranston]

6. Thompson is well liked and won't lose

The only republican who could win that district would be Frank Riggs