Only one Phoenix City Council District will remain unchanged after leaders approved new district maps Tuesday. The city is required to adjust boundaries every 10 years after the census count.
Between 2010 and 2020, Phoenix added 162,000 residents. The goal is for each district to be equal in population.
Consultant Priti Mathur told the council that in 2010, the differences between districts were less than 5%.
"But for 2020, the districts as they are, the maximum deviation rose to 14.45%, which meant that our current council districts were no longer in compliance," Mathur said.
Mathur was hired by the city to oversee the redistricting process, which included working with council members, holding public meetings and gathering resident input.
To have each district represent as close to 201,000 people as possible required additions and subtractions to all except District 1, which covers northwest Phoenix. With 198,369 residents, District 1 was closest to the ideal population.
Districts 3, 4 and 6 needed to gain between 10,000 and 12,000. Districts 5 and 8 needed to lose between 4,000 and 7,000 people, while District 7 needed to lose about 17,000.
Another primary goal, Mathur said during her presentation to the council, was to protect minority voting power.
“There are four districts, which are majority Hispanic districts and there are four districts, which are majority non-Hispanic white districts," Mathur said. "Then, we looked at the total population for the recommended district and we have been able to maintain the 4-4.”
Based on census data, Phoenix districts that are majority-Hispanic are Districts 4, 5, 7 and 8 and districts that are majority non-Hispanic white are Districts 1, 2, 3 and 6.
The new districts take effect in January. View the new boundaries here.
Phoenix City Council redistricting presentation
Below is the September 26, 2023, presentation before the Phoenix City Council. Members unanimously approved the consultant's recommendation.
