Independent Redistricting Commission just completed its work laying out political maps for the next decade.
By Jeremy Duda | Arizona Mirror
When the next Arizona Independent Redistricting Commission convenes in 2031, it might be drawing 90 single-member House districts instead of 30 districts with two representatives apiece, at least if Sen. J.D. Mesnard has any say over it.
For the second consecutive year, Mesnard has introduced a proposed ballot referral that would dramatically alter the makeup of the state’s House of Representatives. Senate Concurrent Resolution 1012 would ask voters to amend the Arizona Constitution so that each of the state’s 30 Senate districts would be split into three separate House districts.
Each of the 30 districts now has two House representatives who serve at-large. Mesnard’s plan would have 90 House members who each represent their own district.
At about 238,000 people apiece, Arizona’s legislative districts are among the most populous in the country. House members here represent more constituents than any other state except California, with more than five times Arizona’s population. Arizona is also one of only a few states in which multiple House members are elected at-large in their districts.
For Mesnard, a Chandler Republican, the principle is that the government closest to the people governs best. And the fewer constituents you have, the closer you are to them.
“At some point, you’ve got to acknowledge we’re a fast-growing state and our House is tiny,” he said. “You reach a point where it’s not really practical to be representing that many people.”
If voters were to approve the measure, the Arizona House wouldn’t expand until after the 2030 census, when the state will again redraw its district boundaries.
