As the Pierce County Charter Review Commission meets to recommend changes to our county charter, one major issue commissioners should consider is the number of seats on the county council.
Since the Pierce County government was first chartered in 1981, the county has nearly doubled its population. Despite this significant increase in the number of voters, the number of seats on the county council has remained the same. This situation has led to a dramatic dilution of each individual voter’s ability to influence their government.
This ongoing dilution has serious implications for the county’s democratic character, especially as it relates to minority representation. Throughout the United States, white people tend to be substantially overrepresented in local governments. According to the International City/County Management Association, which surveys local governments in the United States on the demographics of their representatives, white people hold 89% of the legislative seats in local governments, even though they only compose 61% of the population…