Redistricting Commission Recommends Map to Council

The Commission on Redistricting voted 6-5 to recommend this map to the county council for review. Via Montgomery County Council YouTube channel.

Members of the Redistricting Commission voted 6-5 for the map it will send to the county council recommending how to divide the county into new districts.

The map divides Montgomery County into seven districts each of which can elect one council member and one at-large council member. The map stands as a revision of one presented last week when the commission narrowed its choices to three maps as the county moves to add two additional council seats. During a meeting Wednesday, Commissioner David Stein said changes reflect input from commissioners as well as the public.

The Commission must now write a report for the county council. Members will meet next on Nov. 3 to vote on a final report and map to deliver to the council by Nov. 5.

District 1 includes Chevy Chase, Bethesda, Potomac, and Travilah.

District 2 is exclusively upcounty; it contains all of North Potomac, all of Germantown, and includes Clarksburg.

District 3 is in east county and would be a plurality African American district. It starts at the Beltway around Four Corners, goes up to Burtonsville and up to the top of Cloverly, Spencerville, and Colesville.

District 4 includes Rockville and Gaithersburg. The commission voted to keep the cities together.

District 5 is the Silver Spring district. It includes Silver Spring/Long Branch and Takoma Park, extending up to North Bethesda.

District 6 is the Wheaton district; it starts in Forest Glen and includes all of Wheaton, the entire Glenmont district, and goes up through Aspen Hill into Derwood.

District 7 is the upcounty/midcounty district. It includes Olney, Montgomery Village and continues all the way into Damascus.

Stein said six districts are majority people of color. The revised map moved part of Chevy Chase from the Silver Spring district into the Bethesda district, resulting in the Silver Spring district going from Takoma Park up to North Bethesda. The Wheaton district therefore loses North Bethesda and extends up to Derwood, Stein said. The Hispanic population and voting-age population of the Wheaton district increases to become a plurality. The upcounty/midcounty district has more upcounty representation by adding in areas around Damascus. Some upcounty community concerns were addressed, so Germantown and North Potomac are no longer split, Stein said.

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