As required by law, the Queen Anne’s County Commissioners appointed seven members to a Redistricting Board to review the 2010 Census and determine if the county’s four commissioner districts continue to fairly represent the population. The appointments were made at the June 29, meeting.
“The idea is that each of the four districts should be roughly equal in population,” said County Attorney Patrick Thompson. “It is based on the one man one vote premise.”
Every 10 years, following the National Census, the county must appoint a seven-member Redistricting Board composed of three appointees selected by the County Commissioners, two appointees of the Democratic Central Committee and two appointees of the Republican Central Committee.
The commissioners appointed Megan Del Gaudio, who manages the county’s Geographic Information System, Brittani Thomas, election director of the Queen Anne’s County Board of Elections, and Dana York, a board member of the League of Women Voters of Queen Anne’s County.
The Queen Anne’s County Democratic Central Committee selected Kenneth W. Addison and Thomas R. Rider, the committee’s secretary and chairman respectively.
The Queen Anne’s County Republican Central Committee’s representatives to this board are Mark Newgent and JoAnn Wilkerson.
According to county code, the Redistricting Board shall convene not later than 30 days after appointment to organize and shall elect a Chairman from among its members. By April 1, 2012, the Redistricting Board shall establish tentative boundaries of the four County Commissioner Districts after due consideration and investigation within reasonable and lawful guidelines. The Redistricting Board shall set and conduct at least three public hearings in different geographical areas of the County and shall give notice of the time, date and place of such hearings at least twice in a newspaper of general circulation in Queen Anne’s County. After all public hearings have been held, a final draft of the districting plan shall be completed and submitted to the County Commissioners and shall thereupon become law. After the plan becomes law, the Redistricting Board shall terminate its existence.