California Attorney General investigating Butte County redistricting process

OAKLAND, Calif. (CN) — California’s Attorney General’s Office on Tuesday announced a probe into Butte County’s redistricting procedures. It’s seeking to determine whether the county violated the state’s Fair Maps Act and federal voting rights laws during the 2021 redistricting process.

Attorney General Rob Bonta said that allegations made about the redistricting process in the Northern California county are serious and require an investigation.

“In a democracy, every eligible voter deserves fair and equal representation,” Bonta said. “We must ensure that the voting rights of all communities are protected and upheld. Our goal is to maintain the integrity of the redistricting process and promote a fair and inclusive electoral system for all Californians."

The investigation will be performed by the state Department of Justice’s Racial Justice Bureau within the Civil Rights Enforcement Section.

Butte County supervisors argued over the redistricting process in late 2021. Supervisor Debra Lucero in November 2021 claimed that a majority of supervisors ignored the firm hired to handle the redistricting process and instead voted to move ahead with a newly introduced map. She claimed the map pushed by the majority appeared drawn for political gain, according to media reports.

A month later, in a 3-2 vote, Butte County supervisors approved a redistricting map that created two agricultural districts on the county’s west side, dividing farmers who rely on groundwater and surface water.

Board Chairman Bill Connelly said at the time that people in rural areas need multiple voices on the county level.

The two supervisors opposing said those agricultural areas should be one district, as it’s a community of interest, according to the 2019 Fair Maps Act.

The map also split Chico among four districts, which had city residents concerned over the dilution of Democratic votes. Lucero said the new map broke up communities of interest like students, people with low incomes and Latinos.

The law states that the integrity of any neighborhood or community of interest “shall be respected in a manner that minimizes its division.”

A community of interest is one that shares certain social or economic interests. It should be within one supervisorial district for effective and fair representation and does not include relationships with political parties, political candidates or incumbents, the law states.

Bonta said he has broad authority to investigate possible violations of the Fair Maps Act to ensure the state’s laws are properly and uniformly enforced. The Department of Justice remains committed to performing a proper investigation, he added.

The Attorney General’s Office has made no decision at this time about any claim concerning the conduct of those involved in the redistricting.

The Butte County map is the only investigation into a county’s redistricting process that the Attorney General’s Office is currently conducting. However, it’s also investigating the Los Angeles City Council’s 2021 redistricting process, Bonta’s office said in an email.