Orange County Line
The strange case of Santa Ana's district elections
And what the final decision might do to the rest of Orange County.
By Gustavo Arellano • • 4m ListenOn July, 17, the Santa Ana City Council will decide whether to place on the November ballot a measure that would allow voters to decide whether to vote for councilmembers by district elections. The city has had a ward system since the 1980s, where councilmembers represent areas of Santa Ana but are elected citywide. But a lawsuit by the nonprofit Asian Americans Advancing Justice says that system discriminates against Asian American voters. A majority of the council tried to put it on the June primary, but that failed after Mayor Miguel Pulido refused to sign paperwork that would've put it on the ballot. Those councilmembers, in turn, sued Pulido. What will happen next--and how might that affect other district election pushes in OC?
