Under a trustee-area-based election system, the District would be divided into new equally populated trustee areas. A candidate must reside within an election trustee area and is elected only by voters residing within that same election trustee area.
Currently, five members are elected from the school district at large and serve four-year terms.
Districting determines which neighborhoods and communities are grouped together into a trustee area for purposes of electing Board Members. The School District will seek input in selecting the next trustee area map for electing Board Members. You have an opportunity to share with the School District how you think trustee area boundaries should be drawn to best represent your community either during the public hearings or by submitting comments to communityengagement@lvjusd.org.
- Federal Laws
- Equal Population (based on total population of residents as determined by the most recent Federal decennial Census and adjusted by the State to reassign incarcerated persons to the last known place of residence)
- Federal Voting Rights Act
- No Racial Gerrymandering
- California Criteria for Cities (to the extent practicable and in the following order of priority)
- Geographically contiguous (areas that meet only at the points of adjoining corners are not contiguous. Areas that are separated by water and not connected by a bridge, tunnel, or ferry service are not contiguous).
- Undivided neighborhoods and “communities of interest” (Socio-economic geographic areas that should be kept together for purposes of its effective and fair representation)
- Undivided cities and “Census Designated Places,” or CDPs. CDPs are unincorporated areas unofficially recognized and mapped by the Census Bureau.
- Easily identifiable boundaries (for example following railroads, rivers or major roads)
- Compact (Do not bypass one group of people to get to a more distant group of people)
- Prohibited: “Shall not adopt election district boundaries for the purpose of favoring or discriminating against an incumbent, political candidate, or political party.”
- Other Traditional Districting Principles
- Future population growth
A community of interest is a “contiguous population that shares common social and economic interests that should be included within a single district for purposes of its effective and fair representation.”
The shared interests may include (but are not limited to):
- Shared public policy concerns such as education, public safety, public health, environment, housing, transportation, and access to social services. cultural districts;
- Shared socioeconomic characteristics;
- Similar voter registration rates and participation rates; and /or
- Shared histories.
Definitions of Communities of Interest may not include relationships with political parties, incumbents, or political candidates.
The School District will reach out to local media, will post official public hearing notices, and will share information through social media to publicize the districting process. Also, we will make a good faith effort to notify community groups about the districting process. Our public hearings and workshop will be provided in applicable languages if residents submit a request in advance to communityengagement@lvjusd.org.
The School District will notify the public about districting hearings and workshops, post maps online before adoption, and maintain this dedicated web page for all relevant information about the districting process.
Share your specific thoughts, draw a map, or attend the workshop to get involved.
- Submit written testimony about your community, the process, or a specific map to communityengagement@lvjusd.org.
- Click here to see the calendar of public meetings at which you can speak about the process or a specific map.
- Click here for information on drawing and submitting maps.
These are standard categories included in the Census. Not all of the categories are relevant for creating district maps. Acronyms include:
- NH: Non-Hispanic
- VAP: Voting age population
- CVAP: Citizen Voting Age Population
- CVRA: California Voting Rights Act
- FAIR MAPS Act: Fair And Inclusive Redistricting for Municipalities and Political Subdivisions
- NDC: National Demographics Corporation (the firm hired to produce the maps and provide demographic data)
No, you do not need to submit a fully completed map. You can draw boundaries for only your neighborhood or only a portion of the district. It is helpful if you submit written commentary with your map describing why the particular neighborhood or area should be kept together in a single district.
Yes, you may submit more than one map. Please draw as many maps as you like. We suggest you submit only your top 2-3 preferred maps to assist the Board Members in focusing on the map that best represents your community; however, there is no limit.
After you submit your map, the demographic consultants will generate the population and other demographic details for your proposed map. Maps can be viewed on the Draft Maps page or on the Interactive Review Map.
Once submitted, maps are considered public records.
Online publications and guides to districting:
- From MALDEF, the NAACP and the Asian Justice Center
- From the Asian Americans Advancing Justice
- From the Brennan Center
- From the League of Women Voters
- From the California Independent Redistricting Commission FAQs
- The California Voting Rights Act (California Elections Code Sections 14026 – 14032)
- California Elections Code procedures for districting (California Elections Code Section 10010)
- California FAIR MAPS Act (California Elections Code Section 21600 etc.)