Sierra View district map approved
Will be used for 2018 election of two director seats
Sierra View Local Health Care District officially approved at their board meeting Tuesday a district map that will be used in the future elections of its directors, concluding a monthslong process that saw the appointment of a special zone elections committee to navigate the decision making process and three public hearings that elicited little input from district residents.
Aside from the board and Sierra View Medical Center staff, the meeting was attended by about a dozen community members, including several who served on the zone elections committee.
After thanking members of the zone elections committee for their participation during the selection process, board vice-chair Dr. Gaurang Pandya, who served as chair of the committee, briefly explained how they made their selection from four proposed map layouts.
“As we looked at the options, map number four had the best characteristics of having equal amount of distribution of the ethnic population, and also it was nicely laid out on the map so that people would understand which zone they are in,” said Pandya.
Director Dan Smith, who also served on the zone committee, also felt that map number four best suited the needs of the district.
“It was unanimously held that among those we looked at, [number four] appeared to be the most fair, not only in terms of numbers, but easily read and understood by anyone looking at it. It’s easy to tell where you are, and it doesn’t have the appearance of gerrymandering — just very straightforward.”
After one zone committee member said it was a pity that there wasn’t more public input on the matter, Smith stated the input received from the zone committee itself, which was largely comprised of community members, was more than sufficient to make an informed decision.
“I think the quality of the people and the discussion was great,” said Smith. “I agree that more is great, but I think we had terrific people as part of the committee who worked well together and came to a good decision.”
The committee initially considered three maps prepared by Bay Area demographic research group Lapkoff and Gobalet that divided the Sierra View Local Healthcare District into five voting districts of roughly equal population. The district covers about half of Tulare County, including its largely rural southeast corner that stretches into the Sequoia National Forest.
After expressing concern about meandering district boundary lines, the committee requested some layout modifications, and the result was a fourth map that smoothed out boundary lines and compacted the zones, making it easier for residents to determine at a glance in which district they reside.
With the new district boundaries, director Sorrels represents District 5 (large geographical district encompassing rural areas east of Porterville), and director Behl represents District 3 (central Porterville and East Porterville). Both of their terms expire in 2018, and their seats will be the first to be filled using the by-district voting next November.
Director Smith represents District 1 (northwest Porterville and rural areas), director Pandya represents District 2 (central Porterville), and director Jindal represents District 4 (southwest Porterville and rural areas). The terms for all three directors expire in 2020.
The board of directors voted unanimously in October 2016 to transition from at-large to by-district (zone) elections, and drafted a resolution specifying that at least two public hearings be held to hear community input on the selection process.
The resolution also established that provisions concerning protected groups as identified in the California and Federal Voting Rights Acts be considered, and that the board would select a district plan before May 2018 so that the November 2018 election of two directors would be held using the by-district system.
With the district map approved, Sierra View joins the growing number of special districts throughout the state who have made the transition to district elections largely in response to critics of at-large elections, who claim that they dilute the votes of groups protected from discrimination in the voting process based on their race, religion, national origin or other characteristics.
These critics claim that at-large elections prevent communities from electing their true candidates of choice, and hinder meaningful participation in the political process.
Since the passage of the California Voting Rights Act in 2002, more than 60 cities and 135 school districts across California have switched to district elections to avoid or settle lawsuits alleging voter discrimination.
The approved district map will now be submitted to the Tulare County Board of Supervisors for implementation in board member elections starting in 2018.
Tuesday’s board meeting also served as the organizational meeting for the board for 2018. Dr. Rakesh Jindal was elected to be board chair for the upcoming year, and Smith was elected to be new vice-chair. Dr. Ashok Behl was re-elected as secretary, and the board appointed SVMC Chief Financial Operator Doug Dickson as treasurer.