WA House passes bill requiring AG say-so to redraw city, county, school maps

(The Center Square) – House Democrats passed a bill on Thursday that would expand the Washington Voting Rights Act to require the attorney general’s approval before adjusting local election boundaries.

The 57-39 vote, which saw one Democrat cross the aisle to join every Republican in opposition, sent House Bill 1710 over to the Senate. The proposal would create a “preclearance” system under WVRA to prevent local governments from diminishing the ability of protected classes to participate in elections.

The bill would apply to counties, cities, towns, school districts, fire protection districts, ports and public utility districts that have a history of discriminatory patterns. Those governments would have to obtain AG approval before modifying boundaries, election methods, restricting language assistance and more.

“The Attorney General of Washington state [would have] the power to redraw all the boundary lines of every district in my community,” Rep. Jeremie Du...