Chula Vista taking applications through April 17.
Residents of the City of Chula Vista are encouraged to apply for the Districting Commission which will recommend four City Council districts to be used in future elections, beginning in 2016.
Currently, the City is not divided by districts and residents vote for each council candidate citywide. However, in 2012, voters approved an amendment to the City Charter that City Councilmembers will be elec-ted by geographic district beginning with the 2016 election. Those running for Council must reside in the district they wish to represent and residents will vote only for candidates in their respective district. For example, the Coun-cilmember serving District 1 will reside in District 1 and be elected only by voters who reside in District 1. The Mayor will continue to be elected at-large.
Minimum qualifications for the Districting Commission members are that the applicant must be a Chula Vista resident, a registered voter and at least 18 years of age. Detailed requirements and qualifications can be found in the City Charter, Section 300.5, at http://www.chulavistaca.gov/City_Services/Administrative_Services/City_Clerk/PDFs/CharterSection300.5.pdf.
Applications, which will be accepted through April 17 at 5 p.m., can be submitted online at http://www.chulavistaca.gov/City_ Services/Administrative _Services/City_Clerk/Boards/Distric tingCommission.asp.
For further information about the application process, contact the City Clerk’s office at (619) 691-5041.
After April 17, the Charter Review Commission will review all applications and select ten of the most qualified. Out of those ten, four will be selected randomly to be Districting Commission members, then those four will select the final three for a total of seven members from the initial list of ten.
In an effort to have the districts drawn by the July 2015 campaign fundraising season, the Charter Review Commission’s goal is to seat the Districting Commission by July 2014, giving the members one year to complete the task.