A citizen petition that could radically change the city of Miami’s government has surpassed its 20,000 signature goal, bringing it one major step closer to the ballot box.
Stronger Miami is a citizen initiative launched last April seeking to amend the city’s charter with the goal of expanding resident representation and engagement in local elections. The initiative’s backers include community groups like One Grove Alliance and Engage Miami.
The petition’s proposed changes to the city charter are as follows:
- Expanding the number of voting districts and commissioners from five to nine
- Adding language to the charter requiring that redistricting does not favor or disfavor one political party
- Neighborhoods must be kept whole during decennial redistricting
- Moving city elections to from odd years to even years
“ We’ve been very pleased with the participation from all five districts in the city, in all corners of the city. 20,000 signatures for a specific action to improve the participation of citizens in the governance of their own city — that’s a big deal,” One Grove Alliance Director Mel Meinhardt told WLRN in an interview…