McDonough Beginning to Look at Council Redistricting

The McDonough council heard a presentation on Thursday night about council redistricting. The city council must update its districts following the last census in 2020.

The council will decide at their next meeting whether to pursue a district update. A failure to update them would leave it up to state legislators next year.

McDonough Council Redistricting

The McDonough council has six members plus the mayor. Two members serve at-large elected by the entire city. The remaining four each represent a district. Political districts must undergo an update after each census to ensure they have equal population.

Whereas only the state legislature can update county districts, cites are different. McDonough can adopt its own council redistricting if it so chooses. It defaults back to the state if they do not.

The council can adopt new districts with an affirmative vote at two consecutive meetings. This process has to occur in time before the November 2023 elections. Three council members are on the ballot.

2010 Districts

In 2010, McDonough had a population of 22,084. This number rose to 29,051 in 2020. There exists a significant difference in population among the current 2010 districts. One district has actually lost population.

According to Dave’s Redistricting, an online tool used among political circles, here are the current populations in each council district:

Based on the above info, the council must adopt new districts. It also should take place before this fall’s elections. The ideal district size would be 7,263 residents. Interestingly enough, the present-day council two is only 13 residents above this number. The council could leave this district as is. The others must see changes to balance population.

Featured image shows McDonough City Hall. Clayton Carte photo.