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Lane County Commissioners have long had the final say on the political maps used to elect them.
A controversial proposal before voters in November would change that.
It would rewrite the county’s charter - a document similar to a constitution - permanently taking the power to draw the county’s political boundaries away from the commissioners. Instead, the once-a-decade task would fall to a committee of randomly selected volunteers. If approved, the measure would also throw out the current map, to be replaced with a new round of redistricting next year.
The current map was drawn in 2021 by a group of community members, some of whom were appointed by commissioners. They sent three maps to the commissioners, who made the final choice.
The proposed charter amendment's author, retired Eugene attorney Stan Long, argued that process was unfairly influenced by politics.
“I think it's scary to have people who are interested in the outcome make the decision,” Long said. “I’d feel better if we transferred the power away from politicians and their followers. I’d rather have impartial people decide that.”
Long argues the current map is unfairly Eugene-centric and partisan, and the county shouldn’t continue using it.
“I’m not here to support the idea that we should willy-nilly redistrict,” he said. “I’m trying to correct an injustice.”
An out-of-cycle redistricting has raised concerns from the Lane County Clerk. In a memo sent to commissioners this summer, Dena Dawson said elections staff will already be stretched thin with a slate of state mandates planned for next year.
Terry Parker, president of the League of Women Voters of Lane County, said her organization also has concerns. She said the 2021 maps were created in a transparent and legal manner, and the public had opportunities to observe the process.
“Other people got to look at the maps and the League of Women Voters was in the room,” Parker said.
Parker said she doesn’t necessarily oppose the concept of independent redistricting - but believes this proposal, which became public this summer, isn’t ready.
“What if somehow this idea that came up in the last couple of months, versus being reviewed over time, you want to actually include representation that includes minorities,” she said. “It doesn’t do that now, so I really believe that there are some significant improvements that we could make over time, [but] we will be locked into really a flawed structure.”
The proposal has also drawn opposition from retired U.S. Rep. Peter DeFazio, who also served on the Lane County Commission before getting elected to Congress. Defazio–a Democrat–calls the charter amendment a right-wing gerrymander.
“Citizens of Lane County drew up these maps through a long public process with public hearings,” DeFazio said. “They are simply wanting to get a different result, because particularly David Loveall in Springfield, are worried about getting reelected.”
Loveall, an outspoken conservative, is one of three commissioners who have not faced an election on the current map. The county missed the deadline to have the map in place for the 2022 election, and didn’t begin using it until 2023.
According to county voter registration data - there are a few hundred more Republicans in Loveall’s district now than before redistricting, but there are about 1,000 more Democrats and 2,000 more non-affiliated voters. Loveall won his district on the old map by less than 100 votes.
In an interview with KLCC, Loveall strongly disagreed with DeFazio’s characterization, saying his support was about fixing a broken process that created an unbalanced product.
“It's just not the case,” Loveall said. “I don’t need this job. I took this job because I thought I could do the job well, and my passions and my experience with economic development and my intentions about putting public safety first. I think those are important issues the voters of Lane County want someone to represent them [on]. I’m not thinking about the next election cycle, I’m just thinking about what’s right, and what’s fair.”
If voters approve the amendment, the county would face a tight turnaround. Redistricting volunteers must meet specific criteria: no lobbyists, elected officials, campaign staff or county employees. The county will also likely need to have a map drawn, adopted and implemented ahead of the May 2026 primary.
Once that new map is complete, redistricting outside of a ten-year census cycle would be banned.
