Republicans nationwide are gerrymandering voting districts to retain permanent control, and it’s happening here in Arizona.
The AZ Independent Redistricting Commission’s public comment period is coming to a close soon. If you haven’t raised your voice yet, Democrats must do so next Saturday. The proposed legislative district map is a disservice to voters and to AZ’s exemplary redistricting requirements. We need to let the IRC know: we want compact, sensible, fair, and competitive maps that comply with Voting Rights Act requirements.
Show Up at the Southern Arizona Public Hearing, Saturday, Dec. 4, 10am
Help us make a strong case that the draft maps don’t serve Southern AZ voters: Even if you don’t speak, we want to make sure we’re well represented, so get there early — the meeting is at the Four Points by Sheraton Tucson Airport Hotel, 7060 S. Tucson Blvd., Tucson, AZ 85756. Get there early!
“If you live in a neighborhood, school district, or city that’s been split into pieces in the current maps, we especially want to hear from you!” said Tamar Rala Kreiswirth, founder of The Arizona Ground Game. Click on the links below to comment before December 6, or join us at the meeting on December 4.
COMMENT ON THE LEGISLATIVE MAPS
COMMENT ON THE CONGRESSIONAL MAPS
| The Republican anti-voter strategy:
Shelley Kais, Chairman, of the Pima GOP says, “DO NOT use language commonly associated with the Democrats! If you’ve listened to any amount of testimony (like I have) you’ll recognize these right away.” Absolutely avoid ** DO NOT use **COMPACTNESS**. What exactly does that mean? Could you explain it if you were asked? Again, it means nothing. DO NOT complain about **GERRYMANDERING** It was invented by Democrats, but they love to complain about it. It’s basically a catch-all complaint when things don’t go their way. Our suggestion is that you stay positive and avoid complaints about anything for the most part. |
Democratic Talking points |
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| Republican Talking Points |
Counterargument | Evidence |
| LD17 would give representation to Republicans since they were unrepresented previously. | Oro Valley, Marana & SaddleBrooke are currently in LD11 which is a Republican district. Oro Valley has been part of a safe Republican district for the last ten years. | • State representatives have all been from the Republican party since LD11 was created in 2010. • LD11 was a manufactured district to give Republicans a safe district. • Voters in Oro Valley have been disenfranchised in the current, uncompetitive district and therefore, should be part of a competitive district going forward. |
| There is a bigger vote spread in adjoining districts that favor Democrats, so an almost 10 percentage vote spread in LD17 is justified. | This is called packing. Democrats are packed in a few districts so that their voices are minimized in others. Solid one-party districts lead to extremist representation where ideology and not policy matters. |
• Two principal tactics are used in gerrymandering: “cracking” (diluting the voting power of the opposing party’s supporters across many districts) and “packing” (concentrating the opposing party’s voting power in one district to reduce their voting power in other districts) • Oro Valley is currently represented by Mark Finchem who was at the January 6th insurrection, has perpetuated the big lie that the 2020 election was stolen, and is a vocal QAnon supporter & conspiracy theory spreader. He has been censured on Twitter and received 82 formal ethics complaints just this year. This is extremist representation made possible by the current configuration of LD11. |
| Oro Valley is rural. | Oro Valley is suburban- urban & considered to be a suburb of Tucson | • According to the US Census Bureau, Oro Valley is part of the Tucson urban area. With a population of 47,502, it is just under the 50,000 considered to be an entirely urban area. • Vail has a population density of 561 per square mile compared to Oro Valley’s 1,362. Tanque Verde’s population density is 514 people per square mile. Vail and Tanque Verde are rural. |
| Oro Valley has rural interests. | Oro Valley’s interests are suburban/urban interests (balanced development, clean water availability, affordable energy and good schools) |
• Oro Valley is experiencing growing pains. Residents just came together to turn Rancho Vistoso Golf Course into a nature preserve. Oro Valley is 85% built-out with a limited supply of vacant land according to a recent study. |
| Oro Valley gets its water from Tucson, reclamation and wells while the rural areas get water from ground water sources. Tucson Electric Power provides the Electrical Service in Oro Valley. • Tucson students attend Amphitheater School District along with students from Casas Adobes. The official canvass for the August 4, 2020 primary election from the Pima County Elections Department found that Proposition 208 passed in Oro Valley. Vail and Tanque Verde voted against Prop 208 that funded schools. |
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| Oro Valley is homogeneous. | Oro Valley is diverse by every measure: economy, demographics, political party affiliation | • Oro Valley has a robust economy with a large workforce in retail trade, health care, professional services and hi-tech businesses. • Oro Valley has a median age of 54. • Oro Valley’s population is almost 25% minority. • Oro Valley’s party affiliation mirrors that of the state. |
| Oro Valley is best represented in a noncompetitive Republican district. | A community of interest shares policy concerns and benefits from being in a single district. Oro Valley’s community of interest has not been represented by its current legislators.. | • Oro Valley has supported public education, overwhelmingly passing Prop 208 yet just this past legislative session, our state legislators voted for bills that reduces educational funding. • Oro Valley uses less groundwater today than it did 20 years ago by reclaiming water and using CAP water. Yet our legislators voted to limit the use of new hydrological data for assured water supplies for development and weakened water quality requirements. |
| LD 17 is contiguous and compact. | LD17 is neither contiguous nor compact. | • Oro Valley to Vail is a 40 mile, 60-minute drive around two mountain ranges and through at least two other Legislative Districts. In order to get to Vail and Tanque Verde from Oro Valley, you would drive through Oro Valley’s true community of interest Casas Adobes. • LD17 does not resemble a geometric shape. |
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