Prop 77 would take authority away from legislators, Richard
Pombo says
Gilroy – Staunch conservative U.S. Representative Richard Pombo said this week that the Republican-backed measure to redraw California’s political districts ahead of the 2010 census is a bad idea.

Proposition 77 would take redistricting authority away from state legislators and give it to a panel of retired judges. It has received strong support from Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and Republican lawmakers. Democratic legislators, who hold the majority in the Assembly and Senate, and control the redistricting process, have decried the measure as a waste of public money.

In an interview this week, Pombo, R-Tracy, who represents Morgan Hill and San Martin, said the measure won’t take politics out of the process because the judges will be selected by party affiliation. He said new districts drawn before the next census won’t accurately reflect shifting populations.

“I don’t necessarily disagree with it, I just think doing it in the middle like this is a mistake,” Pombo said. “In order to have a fair election they would have to do another census. And the way they’re talking about doing it, I would have to file for reelection before I knew where the district was.”

Supporters of the measure say they want to restore geographic integrity to districts that have been carved to protect incumbents. The district of State Senator Abel Maldonado, for example, stretches up the coast and inland from Santa Maria to Morgan Hill.

But a series of initiatives endorsed by the governor are not resonating with the state’s voters, according to recent polls. A poll released last week by the Public Policy Institute of California revealed broad support for just one initiative, Proposition 75, which would limit political contributions from unions. Some of the measures are trailing by wide margins. Just 34 percent of voters support Prop. 77.

On Friday, a Field Poll showed 57 percent of likely voters want the special election scheduled for Nov. 8 called off. Voters gave the governor a 36 percent approval rating, and 47 percent said Schwarzenegger is doing worse than they expected.

The governor’s office declined to comment Friday.

Matt King covers Santa Clara County for The Times. Reach him at 847-7240 or [email protected].

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