Montgomery County has sketched out a new council district map that reflects the suburb’s surge in Black, Latino and Asian residents over the past decade, and attempts to boost representation for communities in the northern, more rural parts of the county. As decided by a 2020 ballot measure, the map adds two districts to the existing five, creating seven district seats on the County Council on top of the four at-large positions.
The county’s redistricting commission voted 6 to 5 Wednesday evening to submit to the County Council one of three draft maps, which was designed by commissioners David Stein, Keshia Desir and former council member Valerie Ervin (D). The council will hold public hearings before a final approval.
Of the seven districts in the draft map, six have voting-age populations that are majority people of color, a reflection of the dramatic demographic changes recorded in Montgomery’s most recent census results. Since 2011, the last time district lines were redrawn, Montgomery has added about 90,000 new residents, many of them immigrants.
Click here to read the rest of the article written by Rebecca Tan over at The Washington Post
