ARNOLD PITCHES PLAN FOR DISTRICTS CITIZENS PANEL WOULD BE IN CHARGE OF REMAPPING.

Byline: HARRISON SHEPPARD and STEVE GEISSINGER Sacramento Bureau

SACRAMENTO -- Reviving his vow to boost the competitiveness of California elections, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger on Tuesday unveiled a plan to reform the controversial and politicized redistricting process by putting an independent citizens panel in charge.

The proposal comes little more than a year after voters trounced his previous redistricting effort, which the governor had championed in a special election.

Signaling a more methodical approach this time, Schwarzenegger said he is confident that with recent bipartisan cooperation in the Legislature, lawmakers will put his proposed constitutional amendment before voters.

``We must bring competition back into the political process, and guarantee that our elected leaders represent the full diversity of California and the will of the people,'' Schwarzenegger said.

Schwarzenegger's plan would create an 11-member Citizens Redistricting Commission, free of elected officials or lobbyists, that would draw congressional and state legislative district boundaries. His previous plan assigned a panel of retired judges to oversee the mapmaking.

Some Republicans, however, already have announced their own efforts. And while many Democrats vowed to work with the governor, some were skeptical and said redistricting is not among their top priorities.

``I don't know the last time I walked up to a constituent who said, `You have to do something about redistricting and you have to do something about making sure the district boundaries are drawn more fairly than they are now,''' said Assembly Speaker Fabian NuIllegal 'X-value' for character STYLs voided here ez, D-Los Angeles.

Flaws seen in the plan

Senate President Pro Tem Don Perata, D-Oakland, who chaired the elections committee that helped forge the current district maps, immediately saw flaws in the plan.

He said county registrars who would be nominating the members of the redistricting panel are hired by county supervisors, many of whom have ambitions to run for higher office.

``At first glance, we're concerned about the lack of attention to independence and diversity,'' Perata said. ``We need to seriously explore all options to make sure this process of drawing district lines is nonpartisan and beyond reproach.''

Competing measure

Meanwhile, Assembly Republican Leader Mike Villines of Clovis has introduced his own bill for redistricting reform.

``We can pass a redistricting bill this year,'' Villines said. ``The atmosphere is right. We've all said we want to do it. The only hang-up is the commission.''

While Villines said he is uninterested in pairing redistricting with any potential changes to term limits, Democrats are expected to try to link them.

The Republican governor was joined at his Capitol news conference by a coalition of government-reform groups that back his redistricting plan, including California Common Cause and the League of Women Voters.

Currently, state lawmakers are responsible for drawing their own district lines, as well as those for the state's congressional delegation.

But critics say the process allows politicians to choose their voters, rather than the other way around.

Current district lines, drawn after the 2000 Census, are widely perceived as having been drafted to protect incumbents and the current balance of power between the parties.

Schwarzenegger said that in the past three statewide elections, only four congressional and legislative seats changed parties out of 459 races.

Melissa Michelson, a political science professor at California State University, East Bay, said the governor's proposal is likely to shift at least a few state legislative seats to Republicans.

``Any redistricting plan will probably lead to more Republican seats because the way the districts are currently drawn favors the status quo, which overrepresents Democrats,'' Michelson said. ``There are a lot of Republicans in California who are not represented in our state government because of the way the lines are drawn.''

Current draft better

Rep. Brad Sherman, D-Sherman Oaks, said while he hasn't reviewed the governor's entire plan, it appears to have corrected some of the flaws in his previous proposal including a mid-decade implementation.

``His current draft is better than his prior work, which I didn't like very much,'' Sherman said.

Sherman said he would hope to see the plan include an additional state Senate seat for the San Fernando Valley. The Valley currently has one district based entirely within its boundaries -- the 20th District now represented by Sen. Alex Padilla, D-Van Nuys -- and portions of three other districts.

Valley seats sought

Two Assembly seats are based entirely in the Valley, with about five others having partial representation.

``I think it's critical that no matter how redistricting goes forward, we get two congressional seats, two (state) Senate seats and four or five Assembly seats, where we know that representative has got to respond to the Valley,'' Sherman said.

San Jose State University political scientist Larry Gerston thinks that ultimately Democrats have to make good on redrawing district boundaries because they promised voters they would during the debate over last year's proposal.

``If they don't act on it, I think it becomes a huge campaign issue,'' Gerston said. ``They told people, `Vote this down and we will deal with redistricting.'''

MediaNews Sacramento Bureau Writer Kate Folmar contributed to this report.

harrison.sheppard(at)dailynews.com

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