Unaffiliated voters need strong voices on Colorado’s redistricting commissions

I registered as an unaffiliated voter on Jan. 19, 2017 — the day before President Donald Trump’s inauguration. In the interim I have been joined by a substantial number of Coloradans, now more than 40% of the electorate.

As the decennial redistricting of congressional and legislative lines kicks off in earnest, that is a reality that must be recognized and honored.

Ten years ago I sat on the Colorado Reapportionment Commission tasked with redrawing the district boundaries for state House and state Senate seats. Despite the original proclamations to work in a bipartisan fashion, as the process drew to a close heated rhetoric and bickering between parties took center stage.

I know because I delivered some of the most caustic lines.

The passage of Amendments Y and Z in 2018 reimagined the entire process. Adopted in order to ensure “politically balanced” maps, deliver “an inclusive and meaningful … redistricting process,” and provide “representation to voters not affiliated with either of the state’s two largest parties,” the amendments granted new clout to unaffiliated voters.

Read the rest of this column in The Colorado Sun.