Philadelphia avoids NAACP lawsuit by adding public hearings on redistricting

Bowing to pressure, Philadelphia City Council will have more than one public hearing on redistricting. 

Philadelphia NAACP head Jerry Mondesire says the group threatened to sue if City Council held only one public hearing on redistricting. He says the settlement announced by council is a good one.

“The first hearing will be here at City Hall on August 16th then there will be a hearing in Kensington, and one in the Northwest and possibly one in the area where Councilman Darrell Clarke currently sits,” said Mondesire.

In addition to the public hearings, Council President Anna Verna says Council will have a formal hearing on a redistricting bill after it’s introduced, probably at the September eighth City Council meeting. Verna says this makes good on council’s own promise to encourage public engagement on redistricting.

WHYY is co-sponsoring another way for voters to have input on the city’s election map. It’s a contest where voters or civic groups can use special software to draw their own ideal Council district map. The best entries will win prizes. An information session on the initiative will be held at 7 p.m. tonight (Monday August 8) at WHYY’s offices on Independence Mall West.