Redistricting approved in Jackson
New plan will go into effect June 1JACKSON — The Jackson County Board of Commissioners unanimously approved a redistricting plan during its regular board meeting Tuesday to rectify the current map that is out of compliance following the 2010 census.
JACKSON — The Jackson County Board of Commissioners unanimously approved a redistricting plan during its regular board meeting Tuesday to rectify the current map that is out of compliance following the 2010 census.
Jackson County Auditor Kevin Nordquist explained there were eight different plans, but regardless of how the lines were drawn, all five commissioners will need to seek re-election this year.
County coordinator Jan Fransen said the commissioners have yet to indicate if they will or will not run for re-election.
In deriving the redistricting maps, Nordquist considered four prominent goals — the evenness of the population in each district, geographical compactness, possibility of rural representation and not having multiple current commissioners run in the same district.
“Some plans were ugly so we narrowed down to the three that made most sense based on our criteria,” Nordquist said. “We tried to get as close to the current map without splitting precincts.”
The county registered a population of 10,266 in the 2010 census.
The ideal average population in each district is 2,053, but Nordquist added each district must be within 10 percent of the average.
Two districts were out of compliance, with District 1 consisting of 105 people less than the 10 percent range and District 4 exceeding the range by 28 people.
Under the new plan, District 1, currently served by commissioner William Tusa, will encompass Round Lake, Sioux Valley, Minneota, Middletown, Petersburg, Ewington, Rost, Hunter and Alba townships.
District 2, currently served by commissioner Kim Hummel, will include Ward 1 in precincts 1 and 2 in the city of Jackson, Wisconsin and Enterprise townships, and the city of Alpha.
District 3, currently served by commissioner Rosemary Schultz, will include the first and second wards in the city of Lakefield, and Heron Lake Township.
District 4, currently served by Roger Ringkob, will include Ward 2 in precincts 1 and 2 in the city of Jackson, and Des Moines and Belmont townships.
District 5, currently served by David Henkels, will include La Crosse, Weimer, Delafield, Christiania, Kimball and West Heron Lake townships, and the cities of Heron Lake, Wilder and Okabena.
The city of Jackson was downsized from four precincts to two precincts.
In the resolution, commissioners also approved that districts 1, 3 and 5 will have four-year terms, while districts 2 and 4 will have two-year terms.
The staggered terms are required to avoid all five commissioners running for re-election in the same year.
The new redistricting plan will be effective June 1 for the 2012 primary and general election.
Daily Globe Reporter Ana Anthony can be reached at 376-7321.
Tags: news, redistricting, approved, jackson
More from around the web
RSS Feeds