Longboat redistricting idea meets resistance

Weighing in on the idea of redrawing the Longboat Key Town Commission’s election-district map, Commissioner Jack Daly says, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.”

Phill Younger, a member of the town’s Charter Review Committee, last month proposed a new idea. Unlike Daly, Younger believes recent history proves the current district system is indeed broken. 

Of the Town Commission’s seven seats, five are elected through geographic districts, meaning the candidates must live within the district boundaries. The other two can live anywhere in town. Voters cast ballots across district lines.

At the May 10 committee meeting, Younger, himself a former commissioner, proposed changing to four district seats and three at-large, with the idea of encouraging candidate participation. At the group’s May 31 meeting, the committee advanced the idea for the Town Commission’s consideration.

In a May 18 email, Daly urged “extreme caution” in redrawing the lines of election districts, noting “each and every commissioner represents the voters on the entire island” and the elimination of one of five district representatives in favor of a third at-large commissioner could create the “unintended consequence” of an over-represented commission.

Commissioner George Spoll attended the May 31 meeting to voice his own concerns about the prospective change.

“This situation would unbalance terrifically the representation of the northern part of our island,” Spoll said.

From his own discussion with potential commission candidates on the north end, former commissioner and Longbeach Village resident Gene Jaleski suggested to the committee the opposite of Younger’s idea: Tighten commission election lines by only allowing those who live in a district to vote for that district’s candidate.

“People are discouraged about running because they have to appeal to the entire island,” Jaleski said. “They don’t feel they can win against a candidate who is supported by interests on the south end.”

A date for Town Commission review has not been set.

Assistant Town Manager Mike Hein and Charter Review Committee Chairwoman Pat Zunz expect the next committee meeting, which will be held on Friday, June 16, will be its last.

Other election-related Charter Review Committee recommendations to be moved forward for the Town Commission’s review:

•  Switch commission elections from March to November.
• Allow commissioners to serve two consecutive three-year terms (instead of three consecutive two-year terms).
• Allow the supervisor of elections for one county to oversee townwide elections.

The commission will choose to forward all, some, or none of the issues to the voters as early as the March 2018 ballot.

At-large vs. districts

Since 2000, 42% of at-large commission races have been uncontested; 70% of district races have been uncontested.