Proper apportionment of our population into representative districts is one of the cornerstone foundations of our democracy. Our Hawaii Constitution enumerates how apportionment shall occur, using a bipartisan commission following sensible guidelines. Improper apportionment for specific political purposes can result in gerrymandering, polarization, and the silencing of certain voices.
Reapportionment occurs with each Census, and the Hawaii Reapportionment Commission is currently deep in the process of establishing new legislative districts that will last until 2032.
On Oct. 28, the commission approved a plan for public comment. This plan has significant deficiencies.
Districts should be as nearly equal in population as practicable so that one person’s vote in a legislative election is worth as much as another’s. The commission’s plans have total population deviations of 8.54% (House) and 7.93% (Senate). Note that the goal for federal districts is only 1%.
Makapuu Point is the traditional boundary between East Oahu and Windward Oahu districts. The commission’s state House plan mixes East Oahu and Windward Oahu neighborhoods into one district stretching from Lanikai to Portlock, diluting the voices of these neighborhoods.
By placing much of Hawaii Kai’s population into a Windward district, the commission’s plan pushes East Oahu district boundaries much farther west than would otherwise be necessary, splitting Hawaii Kai, splitting Manoa Valley, and dividing the current Diamond Head area District 19 among four different districts.
On Oct. 28, commissioners challenged the public to use their interactive maps to propose alternative plans for consideration. Using the current district boundaries as the starting point, I tried to keep districts as compact and contiguous as practicable, as the Constitution directs. My findings:
>> Maintaining Makapuu Point as a natural district boundary is completely viable.
>> East Oahu changes can be manageable: Hawaii Kai and Manoa Valley don’t have to be split, and District 19 doesn’t have to be eliminated.
>> One district must shift to Leeward Oahu because of population changes, but rather than making the Diamond Head area worse, it’s possible that choosing a different district could actually be used to fix other existing problems, such as fixing the current symbiotic District 31/32 Salt Lake area.
>> Elsewhere, rather than being split, Mililani Town could be a single district.
>> The House district total population deviation could be lowered from 8.54% to a much improved 2.58%, with 25 of 35 Oahu districts less than 1% deviation versus only six districts in the commission’s plan. The Senate districts could be similarly improved from 7.93% deviation to 2.02%, with 16 of 17 Oahu districts less than 1% deviation versus only three districts in the commission’s plan.
I’m not alone. Of the five citizen- generated alternative House plans and three citizen-generated alternative Senate plans submitted, all eight plans use Makapuu Point as a natural boundary and all eight plans have a lower population deviation than the commission’s plan.
So far 10 neighborhood boards representing about 300,000 Oahu residents have reviewed the commission’s plan and passed resolutions opposed to that plan.
Public testimony presented at commission meetings and public hearings has been about 90% opposed to the commission’s plan.
What will the commission do with this public feedback? No one knows yet. There has been no interaction with neighborhood boards, no questions asked of testifiers at hearings, and no hint of what the commission is thinking.
The public has made it crystal clear to the commission that significant changes can and should be made to its plan. The commission is expected to lay out any revised plan at a meeting on Dec. 22 and give approval to the final plan as early as Jan. 3. A rally will be held at the state Capitol at noon on Thursday, Dec. 23.
Bill Hicks first moved to Kailua in 1986, retired from a 48-year military and civilian Navy career in submarines, and is chairman of the Kailua Neighborhood Board.
