2022 - Transition to District Elections

At-Large Elections Versus District-Based Elections

Dublin currently has an at-large election system, where all voters in Dublin elect each of the four City Councilmembers and Mayor. A district-based election system is where the City is divided into separate districts of equal population. Each district would then be represented by one Councilmember who resides in and is chosen by voters residing in that same district. The office of Mayor remains elected at-large by all voters even under a district-based election system. 

Learn more here: Help Shape Dublin's Future

Background

On January 4, 2022, the City received a letter from Shenkman & Hughes asserting that the City's at-large system violates the California Voting Rights Act of 2001 ("CVRA"). The CVRA prohibits at-large elections from impairing the ability of a protected class (members of a race, color, or language minority group) to elect candidates of its choice or its ability to influence the outcome of an election. 

On February 15, 2022, the City Council adopted a Resolution declaring its intent to transition to district-based elections. The transition will start with education and outreach to encourage public participation in a transparent and inclusive community engagement process in 2022. District-based elections would then be used for the City's General Municipal Election beginning with the November 2024 election. 

"Communities of Interest"

The City encourages the public to provide input to ensure "communities of interest" are taken into account during the district drawing process. A "community of interest" is a neighborhood or community that would benefit from being in the same district because of shared interests, views, or characteristics. Possible communities of interest include:

• School attendance areas;
• Natural dividing lines such as major roads, hills, or highways;
• Common issues, neighborhood activities, or legislative/election concerns; and
• Shared demographic characteristics, such as:
  • Similar levels of income, education, or linguistic isolation;
  • Languages spoken at home; and
  • Single-family and multi-family housing unit areas. 

Public Participation

The Public Hearings, as part of the Regular City Council meetings, will be broadcast live on Comcast T.V. channel 28 beginning at 7:00 p.m.  The regular meetings will also be livestreamed at www.tv30.org and on the City’s website at: https://dublin.ca.gov/ccmeetings

Members of the public who wish to participate in the meeting electronically have the option of giving public comment via Zoom, subject to the following procedures:

• Fill out an online speaker slip. The speaker slip will be made available here at 10:00 a.m. the morning of the meeting. Upon submission, you will receive Zoom link information from the City Clerk. Speakers slips will be accepted until the staff presentation on an agenda item ends, or until the public comment period on non-agenda items is closed.
• Once connected to the Zoom platform using the Zoom link information provided by the City Clerk, the public speaker will be added to the Zoom webinar as an attendee and muted. The speaker will be able to observe the meeting from the Zoom platform.
• When the agenda item upon which the individual would like to comment is addressed, the City Clerk will announce the speaker in the meeting when it is their time to give public comment. The speaker will then be unmuted to give public comment via Zoom.

Public Hearings and Virtual Community Workshops

The process to establish districts will include:

• Education, information, and outreach materials and meetings for Dublin residents and potential communities of interest
• Tools to engage the public to draw and evaluate draft district map options
• Public hearings to the City Council as to how districts should be established

Following initial education and outreach to the community, the City Council will hold a series of public hearings to receive community feedback on the proposed composition of districts. The first two public hearings will give the community an opportunity to provide input on the composition of the districts before the maps are drawn. The first set of drafts maps will then be drawn before at least two additional public hearings are held for the community to provide input regarding the content of the draft district maps. 

All materials and meeting information, including dates and meetings materials, will be provided on this webpage.

Creation of the Maps

The last deadline for drawing and submitting draft maps passed on July 6, 2022, at 5 pm. Community feedback on draft maps and communities of interest in advance of a Public Hearing and formal public comment given at the hearing will be part of the public record for this critical effort. 

Residents can submit a public comment at a public hearing in-person at 100 Civic Plaza, Dublin, CA 94568, or on Zoom by submitting a speaker slip at https://dublin.ca.gov/ccmeetings. Public Comments can be submitted outside of a public hearing by emailing dublindistricts@dublin.ca.gov.

Review and Submit Draft Maps!

Public mapping tools are now available to assist the public in drawing maps. There are different tools for different purposes and for different levels of technical skill and interest. 

It is helpful if you submit written comments with your map describing how your map was drawn to meet the required criteria. An example of this would be describing the specific neighborhoods or communities of interest that are kept within a single district.

Draft Maps Must be Submitted by:

First Deadline - June 5, 2022, 5:00 p.m. to be considered at the June 21, 2022 Public Hearing

Second Deadline - July 6, 2022, 5:00 p.m. to be considered at the July 19, 2022 Public Hearing

Available Mapping Tools:

1. Paper-only maps:
   • Public Participation Kit – Paper Map w/ Population Count. Maps are also available to pickup at the City Clerk's Office, 100 Civic Plaza.
   • Alternatively, submit any form of hand-drawn map that identifies street names.
2. Dave’s Redistricting (DRA):
   Dave’s Redistricting App (DRA) allows members of the community to create and submit proposed district maps for the City of Dublin. Follow the instructions below and visit this “How To Guide” for more information on how to use DRA.
   • On the main website, register to create a user account to draw a district map.
   • Once you have made an account, you can access the Dublin template and click the paintbrush icon to “Make an editable copy of this map.”
   • Once you have drawn your map, please email a link to map and the plan name that you published to  appears to be an empty link with target mailto:dublindistricts@dublin.ca.gov dublindistricts@dublin.ca.gov (otherwise the City will not know you have drawn it and will be unable to include it in their deliberations).
3. Interactive Review Map: a web application allows you to zoom in and out to view Dublin’s demographic data on a map.

How to Submit Your Map:

You can submit your map electronically, by mail, or in-person:

Email:  dublindistricts@dublin.ca.gov

*For DRA maps, you must email your plan name to dublindistricts@dublin.ca.gov

Focus Maps

At the July 19, 2022 public hearing, the City Council identified Public Map 112 and requested modifications. The demographer created Map 112B to be presented at the August 16, 2022 public hearing. The City continues to encourage residents to review and offer comments on the focus maps.

Draft Maps

The last deadline for drawing and submitting draft maps passed on July 6, 2022, at 5 pm. Community feedback on draft maps and communities of interest in advance of a Public Hearing and formal public comment given at the hearing will be part of the public record for this critical effort. 

Residents can submit a public comment at a public hearing in-person at 100 Civic Plaza, Dublin, CA 94568, or on Zoom by submitting a speaker slip at https://dublin.ca.gov/ccmeetings. Public Comments can be submitted outside of a public hearing by emailing dublindistricts@dublin.ca.gov.

Below are maps submitted prior to the June 21 and July 19, 2022 public hearings. The first deadline for maps was June 5, 2022 to be presented to the City Council at the Public Hearing on June 21, 2022. The second deadline for maps was July 6, 2022 to be presented to the City Council at the Public Hearing on July 19, 2022. The proposed election sequence for each map (listing which districts are proposed for 2024 elections and which are for 2026) is printed on each map.

The most detailed way to view each draft map is using the interactive review map. The link takes you to a website where you can view all of the maps and zoom in and out to see the map details.

Public Maps (Received by 5:00 p.m. on June 5, 2022)

Demographer Maps (For June 21, 2022 Public Hearing)

Public Maps (Received by 5:00 p.m. on July 6, 2022)

Demographer Maps (For July 19, 2022 Public Hearing)

Dublin Districts Informational Video

Help Shape Dublin's Future

Draw a Dublin District Map

Review and Submit Draft Maps

Resolution No. 17-22 Declaring Its Intention to Transition from an At-Large Election System to a District-Based Election System

Community Feedback Received prior to May 17, 2022 Public Hearing

PowerPoint Presentations

August 16, 2022 Public Hearing PowerPoint Presentation

July 19, 2022 Public Hearing PowerPoint Presentation

June 21, 2022 Public Hearing PowerPoint Presentation

May 17, 2022 Public Hearing PowerPoint Presentation

May 4, 2022 Community Workshop PowerPoint Presentation

April 28, 2022 Community Workshop PowerPoint Presentation

April 19, 2022 Public Hearing PowerPoint Presentation

February 15, 2022 PowerPoint Presentation

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Email and Phone

For questions, email dublindistricts@dublin.ca.gov or call (925) 574-4875

Community Outreach

To ensure that Dublin's community-based organizations are informed about the Dublin districting process, please send us an email to confirm they are part of the outreach process.