SOUTH JORDAN — The City Council is considering creating voting districts in response to residential growth.
The council will hold a public hearing Wednesday night on Councilman Brad Marlor's proposal to establish separate voting districts in this city of 29,437. If the idea passes muster, City Attorney Paul Thompson is expected to draft a resolution detailing how the districts would be organized.
"Personally, I'm concerned about it," Thompson said. The danger, he said, is that future council members would focus on their districts more than the entire city.
But, says Marlor, "you get better representation with voting districts," In the past, he said, the city has been represented by candidates from the city's core. But now the city is splintered into new residential developments that contain major portions of the city's population.
Voting districts, said Marlor, will give people from newer areas of the city incentive to run for public office. Four of the five council seats are up for grabs in November, and Mayor Dix McMullin says he will not run for re-election.
McMullin prefers three districts and two at-large candidates to encourage more voter participation. "We try hard to get the voters to come out and vote," he said. "We'll see what the public says."
In growing Riverton, population 25,011, voting districts are generating more controversy than a proposal to establish a new form of government. A residents group and the council are at odds over how to create new districts.
"I am . . . deeply opposed to the creation of council districts," said Riverton Councilman Galen Mills. "We all have the right to vote for the best candidates, regardless of where they live."
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