The City of Sonoma is transitioning from at-large elections to district-based elections for City Council. As part of this process, draft district maps have been developed by the City's professional demographer, incorporating community input and compliance with the FAIR MAPS Act.
The Sonoma City Council will consider these draft maps at their meeting on Wednesday, March 5, 2025, at 5:00 p.m. Community members are encouraged to review the maps and submit public comments through the CivicWeb portal or via email to cityhall@sonomacity.org.
Sonoma residents were invited to submit district map proposals to help shape the City's transition to district-based elections. Professional demographers have reviewed each submission for compliance with districting criteria.
Maps that meet the legal requirements may be considered by the City Council. Those that require minor adjustments can be refined with input from the City's demographer.
The FAIR MAPS Act guides the districting process to ensure fair representation. The criteria include:
Population Equality – Districts must be balanced within a 10% deviation
Contiguity – Districts must be connected
Communities of Interest – Districts should preserve shared social and economic interests
Identifiable Boundaries – Clear, recognizable district lines
Compactness – Districts should be logically shaped
This document evaluates the 16 public-submitted maps (7 four-district and 9 five-district) for compliance. City Council may select compliant maps for further consideration or request refinements to promising submissions.
