Party-line vote sends IRC membership increase to the voters
By Ben Giles | Arizona Capitol Times
Republicans state senators approved a resolution Wednesday that would overhaul the membership of the state body responsible for redrawing Arizona’s legislative and congressional district boundaries.
Voters have to approve the plan, though.
On a 17-13 party line vote, the Senate advanced an amended version of Senate President Steve Yarbrough’s proposal to alter the structure of the Independent Redistricting Commission, an effort Democrats charged was politically motivated.
As amended, SCR 1034 increases the size of the commission from a five- to nine-member body, with an equal split among Republican, Democrat and independent commissioners. Yarbrough, R-Chandler, argued that the effort will better represent the roughly one-third of Arizona voters who aren’t registered with a political party and will dilute efforts by either party to “hijack” the redistricting process in their favor.
