Method of Electing City Council Study Findings

League of Women Voters^®
of Naperville

Method of Electing City Council Study Findings

Findings of the recent study on the methods available to elect members of the city council that led to the League's position in support of "At-Large" elections

Election System Data. FAQ's. Facts and Myths About Method of Elections. Bibliography.

U. S. Cities Election Systems
1998 Data(Source:Municipal Handbook,1998)

Population At Large District Mixed
100,000-249,999 40.2% 22% 37.8%

2000 Data (Source:Dr. Kimberly Nelson, NIU)

At Large Mixed District
Council Manager Cities(n=1639) 64.2% 13.3% 22.6%

Illinois Cities Election Systems
2000 Data(Source:Dr. Kimberly Nelson, NIU)

At Large Mixed District
Council Manager Cities(n=74) 71.8% 8.1% 20.3%
© 2010 League of Women Voters of Naperville

FAQ's on Council Election Methods

Q. Does changing the method of electing the council imply a change in Naperville's "form of government"?
A. No. Naperville's "form of government" is council-manager and this would not change if the method of electing council members were to change.
Q. Does changing the method of electing councilmen change the "non-partisan" status of elections?
A. No. Naperville City elections will still remain "non-partisan".
Q. Does Naperville, as a home rule community, have available to it options for the alteration of the method of electing council members other than those statutorily established alternatives available to non-home rule communities?
A. The City of Naperville, as a home rule municipality, has available to it a wide range of alternatives to elect city council members beyond those already established by statute. The exercise of this home rule power "...to provide for its officers, their manner of selection and terms of office" (Article 7 Section 6 of the Illinois Constitution 1970) would be effective only upon approval of the proposal of such a change by referendum.
Q. If a petition is put together to change the method of election, when does it have to be turned in?
A. Pursuant to 10 ILCS 5/28-2(a), the petition must be filed with the clerk not less than 78 days prior to a regular election. Pursuant to 10 ILCS 5/28-2(d), it should not be turned in more than one year before the election. In addition, only 3 are allowed on each ballot and it's the first 3.
Q. If Districts or a mix would pass, would the terms become effective with the next election or immediately?
A. For Districts: Pursuant to 65 ILCS 5/5-2-18, "if a majority of those voting on the proposition vote "yes" then the sitting city council shall proceed to divide the city into wards in the manner provided in Article 3 and one alderman shall be elected from each ward at the next general election of any city officer. Upon the election and qualification of such aldermen the terms of all sitting councilmen shall expire."

For a mix: Pursuant to 65 ILCS 5/5-2-18.7, "if a majority of those voting on the proposition vote "yes", then the next general municipal election at which a mayor is to be elected, a mayor and councilmen shall be elected herinafter provided...In cities of 50,000 and not more than 500,000 in population, the council shall consist of the mayor and 8 councilmen, 3 councilmen being elected at large and 5 councilmen being elected from districts."
Q. Other big cities in Illinois have District representation, why shouldn't Naperville?
A. Most of the other big cities in Illinois (Chicago, Aurora, Rockford, Joliet, Springfield) have significantly different demographic profiles than Naperville and have large minority populations that have a need to be represented. District representation fits that demographic better than the homogeneous population of Naperville.
Q. Can a referendum question be put on any ballot or does it have to be a city election?
A. It can be put on any ballot.
Q. How do I know which councilman to call if I have an issue?
A. In the at-large system, you can call any or all of the nine councilmen if you have an issue unlike the district system where you would be limited to one alderman or the mixed system with one alderman and four/five at large councilmen.
Q. Will my neighborhood have its own council person with district elections?
A. Each neighborhood will not have a council person. In fact, the districts will have at least 30,000 people living in them. (Larger than some cities in Illinois).
Q. Won't having some council members elected by districts increase the voter turnout in local elections? (See references below)
A. In fact, there is evidence that this is not the case. There are instances when voter turnout has declined with district representation due to lack of a hot issue. The evidence is overwhelming the timing of the election has more influence over voter turnout than anything else.
Q. Having districts will ensure that all areas of the city have a representative on the city council, correct?
A. Not necessarily. Our currently elected council has representatives that live in a wide range of areas from the north to the south and east to the west. Under the mixed method the possibility exists that five of the nine council members could come from one area of the city.
© 2010 League of Women Voters of Naperville

Myths and Facts

Myth: Mixed or all district representation increases voter turnout.
Fact: District elections at the local level suppress voter turnout while at-large election of the council encourages voter turnout. By far the biggest factor in increasing voter turnout is election timing
References:
Curtis Wood,Voter Turnout in City Elections, Urban Affairs Review, November 2002, p.213-214)
Oliver, J.E. 2001, Democracy in Suburbia, Princeton Univ Press
Hajnal, Zoltan and Lewis, Paul, Municipal Institutions and Voter Turnout in Local Elections, Urban Affairs Review, Vol 38 No. 5: p. 661 May 2003
Myth: Your district councilmen lives, drives, walks and shops in your neighborhood.
Fact: Naperville would most likely be divided into 5 wards of equal population which means each ward would have a population of about 30,000 - the size of most other cities around us.
Reference: Illinois Municipal Code: 65ILCS 5/5-2-18.7
Myth: A lot of towns in Illinois have district representation.
Fact: 72% of the cities in Illinois with Council Manager Government have at large elections.
© 2010 League of Women Voters of Naperville

Bibliography on City Council Election Methods

Committee for Council Elections, Alternatives for the Election of Councilmembers in Naperville, April, 1984
Illinois Handbook of Government 2007 + 2008, State Constitution of 1970, Article VII Section 6(f)& 6(i)
Illinois Municipal Code: Municipalities (65 ILCS 5/ Art 5 Div 2): Election of Officers
Paul H. Edelman, In Defense of At-Large Representation: A Positive Approach, August 2003
MacManus, Susan A. and Charles S. Bullock, III. "The Form, Structure, and Composition of America's Municipalities in the New Millennium", Municipal Year Book 2003. Washington, DC: International City/County Management Association 2003, p.15-16.
Renner, Tari and DeSantis, Victor, "Municipal Form of Government: Issues and Trends", Municipal Yearbook 1998. Washington, DC: International City/County Management Association 1998, pp. 30-41
Moon, David, Single Member Districts and At-Large, Winner-Take-All: A Compromise Plan to Improve Montgomery County Council Elections, Fair Vote.Org, May 2006
Hajnal, Zoltan and Lewis, Paul, Municipal Institutions and Voter Turnout in Local Elections, Urban Affairs Review, Vol 38 No. 5: pp 645-668, May 2003
Svara, James, Two Decades of Continuity and Change in American City Councils, Commission by the National League of Cities, September, 2003
Wood, Curtis, Voter Turnout in City Elections, Urban Affairs Review 2002; Vol 38: pp 209-231
Feiock, Richard and Park, Hyung-Jun, District Representation, Economic Development, and the Law of 1/N: How Constituency Diversity Shapes Policy Choices, Askew School of Public Administration and Policy, Florida State University
Grosser, Ben, Major Points and Conclusions Derived from a Review of the Literature Concerning At-Large Electoral Systems, September, 2004
Langbein, Laura, Crewson, Philip & Brasher, Charles Niel, "Rethinking ward and at-large elections in cities: Total spending, the number of locations of selected city services, and policy types", Public Choice Vol 88: 275-293, 1996.
Bullock, C.S.,III, 1990. Turnout in Municipal Elections, Policy Studies Review 9:539-49
Oliver, J.E. 2001, Democracy in Suburbia, Princeton Univ Press
© 2010 League of Women Voters of Naperville

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