Coachella Valley Voting Districts Converge Under Proposed Redistricting Plan

The entire Coachella Valley would be streamlined into one district for state and federal lawmakers under California’s proposed redistricting plan.

After two years of work, the 14-member California Redistricting Commission released draft plans for new congressional and state districts for the entire state on Friday.

The plans show new boundaries for California's 53 congressional districts, 40 state senate districts and 80 state assembly districts, as well as districts for the state Board of Equalization, which handles taxation issues.

The boundaries are in the draft state now and there will be a public input process. The final districts will be released in August.

Under the proposed redistricting, desert cities would no longer be divided among two Assembly, two state Senate and two congressional districts.

The new map shows the valley congressional seat would stretch from the San Gorgonio pass and down into San Jacinto and Hemet as well as include the Coachella Valley cities and continue east to the Arizona border.

The proposed Assembly district is similar, but excludes the pass, Hemet and San Jacinto.

The proposed map of the state Senate district differs slightly. It does not include the pass, and encompasses the desert cities and the communities of Wildomar, Murrieta and Temecula.

Desert Sun reporter Erica Felci speculated in her column that the redistricting could have serious implications for the valley's two Assemblymen.

She wrote:

Republican Sen. Bill Emmerson moved to Hemet last year to run in the current 37th Senate seat, but the boundaries excludes most of his new hometown from the senate district that encompasses the Coachella Valley.

The valley’s two Assembly members also are in a quandary.

Democrat V. Manuel Perez and Republican Brian Nestande have shown an ability to work together in Sacramento, but are now facing the prospect of running for the same Assembly and or Senate seats.

Our hunch is that Rep. Mary Bono Mack let out a huge sigh of relief this morning.

Many had speculated that the 45th Congressional District may be dramatically revamped into a Democratic district, setting up a potentially tough re-election campaign in 2012.

Officials are still crunching the voter registration data, but both Republican and Democratic campaign consultants told The Desert Sun that they expect her to bode well in the new district.

“The commission has made Mary Bono Mack’s day,” said Matt Rexroad, a managing partner of Meridian Pacific in Sacramento who has led a number of local Republican campaigns.

“She should have a pretty nice seat to run for.”