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Advantages of an at-large city council?

The benefits and pitfalls of changing the city council structure

Would Latinos have a better shot at the Phoenix City Council if a movement to add two at-large districts succeeds?

After all, a Latino hasn’t been elected to the city council in more than two decades.

Ed Dravoe is a backer of an effort to add at-large seats to the current eight district seats. He says because of Phoenix’s growing Latino population, Latino candidates will have a better chance if they can draw a majority of votes from the entire Phoenix population.

“At-large districts can provide Latinos more opportunity to get elected,” Dravoe, a Phoenix financial planner, says.

Dravoe argues that in a system in which geographic districts dominate, the incumbent has an advantage in fundraising and visibility.

“Politicians are immune to losing their seats once elected, like now happens in Phoenix,” he says.
He also blames the incumbents’ domination for the trend toward lower voter turnouts in districts during city elections.

“Since our governance system went all district 25-plus years ago, not one elected council member has lost re-election and voter participation is half what it once was,” he says.

Adding two at-large districts would require a city referendum vote to change the Phoenix city charter. Currently, only the mayor draws votes from the entire city. Dravoe says he and his group are in the preliminary stages of educating Phoenix voters about the benefits of at-large districts.

One of the major benefits, he adds, is that at-large council members wouldn’t have to work primarily on neighborhood issues, and could address citywide issues.

“Putting two at-large members on the city council, in addition to the eight existing district members, would ensure that big-play issues like ASU and downtown don’t end up being decided without the greater public having a say in these issues,” says Dravoe.

However, one Latino grassroots political organizer says at-large districts won’t guarantee Latino council members.

“More choice is always more democratic,” says Chris Ibarra, a leader of the Downtown Voices Coalition, an advocacy group. “Adding two at-large representatives to the Council might just be the aperture Phoenix politics needs, one which could possibly enhance opportunities for more culturally diverse candidates, or this proposal might simply guarantee the election of yet two more entrenched, establishment types.”

The last time the Phoenix City Council changed the way it operated was in 1975, when it changed from a geographic district system from a Phoenix 40 charter government system. For updated developments on the at-large districts topic, visit www.latinopm.com and click on Politico Perspectives.