Why the Green Party Endorses Proposition 40

We do so not because these new districts have some particular magic about them. Rather, it is because there is no legal reason to send them to the courts. The process for drawing up these new districts was followed (that was established by the voters in November 2008 when they approved of Prop 11) and the new boundaries are what the Citizens Redistricting Commission came up. End of story.

 

However in endorsing Prop 40, it is important to note that the GPCA  originally opposed Proposition 11 when it was on the ballot in 2008.

 

The biggest concern of the party at the time, was that the real problem with representation is not how districts are drawn, but the use of single-member, winner-take-all legislative districts in the first place. The GPCA had the concern then -- and still has it now -- that 'reforms' that would only tinker with the present system would be distractions to real reform. Instead of redistricting, the Green Party supports multi-member districts with proportional representation.

 

The same mindset that thought that redistricitng would be a meaningful improvement, also led to the narrow passage of Prop 14 in June 2010, the Top Two primary, which was a major step backward for our democracy. Prop 14 limits voter choice and political voice, while increasing the costs of elections.  It also has the long term potential of eliminating all but the Democratic and Republican parties from the ballot entirely within the state.

 

But that's what we get when we fail to take the bold steps needed to abandon our broken system of single-member, legislative districts in favor of a democracy that our state deserves, with proportional representation that would give all voters the best chance to elect someone who represents their views, and would give a seat at the table to all voices in our society.