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04-29-2024 3:04 am • PDX and SEA Weather
MLK Breakfast
Two months after voters approved a sweeping change to city government, the Portland City Council last week approved 13 nominees to the commission that will reshape how Portlanders are represented.
Nearly 300 applicants vyed for a seat on the Independent District Commission, which is tasked with approving a four-district map of the city by Sept. 1 of this year.
Measure 26-228 does away with the current commission style of city council, wherein four commissioners campaign citywide and are then assigned by the mayor to head up various agencies. The measure tasks the new commission with dividing the city into four contiguous districts, with each district receiving three councilors each; the mayor and the city auditor will still be elected in citywide campaigns. Champions of this change argued that city council candidates will be able to focus on more localized issues and represent a greater diversity of voters, instead of trying to appeal to the largest number of voters citywide.
Commission member Neisha Saxena called the switch to this new form of city government an opportunity to achieve “a multiracial democracy.”
Her fellow commission members agreed.
“I think being able to have those multimember districts does benefit the community because there are more city councilors that are able to meet with folks and be on the ground, with everyday Portlanders, making sure they’re actually listening to what folks need and working together to deliver that,” commission member LaMar Wise told The Skanner.
Wise is a community advocate who has worked as a political coordinator for the Oregon AFSCME, as well as served on the board of the ACLU of Oregon, Community Alliance of Tenants Action Fund and on the governor's Racial Council. He previously worked on redistricting advocacy for the state legislature.
“I really enjoyed being able to connect with community and make sure their voices were being heard in a way that is reflective of their lives,” Wise said of his prior experience. “I thought this would be a good opportunity to bring my experience with that to the city
"…at the end of the day, it’s long overdue.
"And I felt like this was an opportunity to make sure that people of color and low-income folks had real representation with lines being drawn.”
Commission member Amanda Manjarrez expressed optimism that the new city council system would inspire greater political inclusion.
"It’s critical that we create districts that honor the unique experiences and identities across our diverse communities,” she said. “My sincere hope is that folks see themselves represented and feel a sense of belonging, possibility, and excitement about getting more involved as potential leaders and as voters in their new districts."
In announcing its selections, the city said it focused on individuals' connection to "a wide variety of Portland communities," some prior election or redistricting experience and a commitment to equity.
Wise said he wasn’t shy about making sure the Black community had a real chance at representation.
“First and foremost, I want to make sure that if we’re building districts, we’re building in a way, quite frankly, where we are building real long-term power for our communities,” Wise said. “I think from what I’ve seen in many elections within the city of Portland, often the more well-off candidates run.
"I think it’s a very special moment where we can make sure that representation is solidified.”
One area that has been under-represented is east Portland, an area that houses the city’s increasingly disenfranchised BIPOC community.
“Hopefully, this will show the community members of east Portland that the city is really interested in hearing their voice and takes heed of their concerns and brings some positive developments,” commission member Arelene Kimura, a resident of the Hazelwood neighborhood, said.
Portland remained the lone major U.S. city to still use this system of local government. These changes to city council will take effect for the November 2024 election, when voters will have the opportunity to select their district representation through a system of ranked-choice voting. In addition, elected members of city council will no longer be assigned to oversee city bureaus, which will be managed by a city administrator yet to be hired.
“The flipside of that challenge is, when there’s more people, there’s more room for dissent and also a lot more communication and coordination is needed,” Wise said. “We’ll see how it plays out. But I do believe that with the current type of government, the city commissioners are doing a lot. They have to manage bureaus and then also represent their districts.
"We put a lot of pressure and responsibilities on commissioners currently.”
The 13 members of the Independent District Commission are:
Alternate members are Marta Hanson, formerly of Lloyd EcoDistrict, Power the Polls and Kamala Harris' reelection campaign for California Attorney General; Ransom Green III, Army veteran, member of Clackamas Community College's Shared Governance and DEI Committees, as well as Clackamas County Veterans Advisory Council; Sohrab Vossoughi, CEO of Ziba design and innovation consultancy and founder of mobility and smart city technology startup Citifyd.
Reserve alternate members are Brian Wilson, owner of a commercial real estate consulting company and former member of the Portland Housing Commission and the Multnomah County Charter Review Commission; Sarah Thompson, former labor organizer and negotiator with AFSCME Council 75, the Oregon Nurses Association, SEIU Local 49 and the Oregon Bureau of Labor and Industries; and Weston Koyama, housing and landlord advocate and public defender.
Commission members were chosen through two rounds of written responses, and told to expect about 20 hours of work a month. They meet for the first time next week, when they will be asked to consider a proposed set of district maps as a starting point in the process. After a couple rounds of feedback, the commission will likely solicit public input in July through a number of public hearings. The commission will then refine the map in response, and will need at least nine votes in order to approve a final districting map.
“This endeavor will only be successful if we are committed to engaging with Portlanders where they are, being in community with them and lifting up their voices as we draw the political boundaries that will unite our city,” commission member Joshua Laurente, a community advocate who was raised in Guam, said.
“Honestly my considerations will be where are the people of color? Where are the Black people? Where are the Latinx folks?” Wise said, calling his seat on the commission “an honor.”
“My hope is that I do right by my community,” he added.
