IOWA CITY, Iowa — A new state law is forcing the three counties that house state universities, University of Iowa, Iowa State University, and UNI, to move away from at-large elections when picking county supervisors.
Monday, the Johnson County Board of Supervisors will meet to review the state’s non-partisan Legislative Services Agency’s proposed district map. The aim is to have five districts will near-equal representation by population.
Under the proposed map and according to addresses listed on recent election filings, four of the board’s five current members live in the same district as another supervisor, meaning they would need to run against each other in next November’s election.
Republican state lawmakers who voted for the law say the law gives rural residents a stronger voice. Back in April when the law was first passed, Johnson County Supervisor Rod Sullivan told Iowa’s News Now “it just isn’t fair to pick out three counties and treat them differently.”…