Let’s get rid of at-large voting in Iowa City

Right now we have a special chance to improve democracy in Iowa City. Our councilors convened a special Charter Review Commission that’s considering changing how our voting system works, and the commission is asking for our input about a key systemic change.

The City Council of Iowa City is elected with an “at-large” system, which means everybody in Iowa City votes for each council seat. The late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg characterized this type of voting as a “second-generation barrier” to minority voting, lumping it in the same category as racial gerrymandering!

“Second-generation barriers come in various forms,” wrote Ginsburg in her dissent to weakening the Voting Rights Act. “One of the blockages is racial gerrymandering, the redrawing of legislative districts in an “effort to segregate the races for purposes of voting.” […] Another is adoption of a system of at-large voting in lieu of district-by-district voting in a city with a sizable black minority. By switching to at large voting, the overall majority could control the election of each city council member, effectively eliminating the potency of the minority's votes.“

Ginsburg’s hypothetical characterization accurately describes what’s actually happening in Iowa City. Voter turnout for last year’s City Council election shows us how.

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US Census data show that the deep red zones on the map contain most of our community members attending the university, most of our community members of color, most of our community members who immigrated from other countries, and most of our community members with the least access to financial resources. In those areas, voter turnout was between zero and 10 percent.

Even though over 50% of our population lives in those areas, 83% of the votes for the last city council election came from OTHER areas. Iowa City has council districts, but we still elect every councilor at-large, and I think it’s clear that as Justice Ginsberg wrote, our current system is a barrier to equal representation for all of these different types of minorities.

I think we should try switching to full district-based voting for each of our council seats to remove our current systemic barrier to minority representation. If you’re worried about representation nationally, I invite you to engage with this important part of our government locally and share your opinion with the Charter Review Commission.

Here are some ways to let them know what you think:

● Attend their public input session on Saturday, September 28th, 10:30 AM, at the Iowa City City Hall

● Email them at ICCharter@Iowa-city.org

Riley Enyon-Lynch lives in Iowa City and co-founded Resilient Sustainable Future Iowa City, a local foundation building long-term, systemic resilience in Iowa City