S A N TA M O N I C A
REFLECTING THE CONCERNS OF THE COMMUNITY
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September 11 – September 17, 2020 Volume XLXIII, Issue 58
California Secretary of State Backs Plaintiffs’ Appeal Against Santa Monica’s Election System California Secretary of State Alex Padilla, 18 state legislators file amicus curiae briefs By SaM CaTaNZaro
The California Secretary of State and 18 state legislators who contributed to the enactment of the California Voting Rights Act have filed letters on behalf of plaintiffs in a lawsuit against the City of Santa Monica that contends the city’s at-large election system violates the CRVA. The case filed by plaintiffs Pico Neighborhood Association, Maria Loya and Advocates for Malibu Public Schools alleges that Santa Monica’s at-large election system dilutes Latino voting power in violation of the California Voting Rights Act (CVRA) and discriminates against Latino voters in violation of the Equal Protection Clause of the California Constitution. In a ruling released February 15, 2019, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Yvette M. Palazuelos ordered that all future elections for seats on the Santa Monica City Council be based on a seven-district map drawn by an expert for the plaintiffs, including a 30 percent Latino district. The City then appealed this decision. On July 9, a three-judge panel from the California 2nd District Court of Appeal ruled in favor of the city saying that Latinos, who account for 14 percent of Santa Monica’s electorate, lack the numbers to win an election in the 30 percent Latino district ordered by Judge Palazuelos. On August 18, the plaintiffs asked the Supreme Court to review the appellate court’s decision. California Secretary of State Alex Padilla on Tuesday, September 7 submitted an amicus curiae brief challenging the appellate court’s
Photo: Sam Catanzaro
Santa Monica City Hall.
ruling that Latino voters in Santa Monica are not concentrated enough to constitute a district with a majority needed for Latino candidates to win. “The Court of Appeal’s opinion, however, threatens to interfere with the ability of aggrieved plaintiffs to obtain relief from voting rights violations the CRVA was specifically intended to remedy,” Padilla wrote. “Contrary to the Court of Appeal’s characterization of evidence – or lack thereof – that an influence
district could translate into electoral success, the trial court highlighted such evidence in its Statement of Decision, including reference to a study that found in districts with a minority population of even less than 30% of a district’s electorate, previously unsuccessful candidates in at-large elections, won in district elections.” “The trial court found that Plaintiff’s expert witness David Ely’s seven-district plan would increase the ability of Latinos to influence the election, or elect their candidate of choice,”
Padilla added. Padilla’s letter comes after an amicus curiae brief was submitted by 18 California legislators, all of whom served in the California Legislature in 2002 and contributed to the enactment of the CVRA. Among these legislators include the principal legislative author and sponsor of the CVRA, retired Senator Richard Polanco, as well as five members of the Elections and Judiciary
Voting Rights, see page 7
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