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Salisbury City Council Votes for Five District Plan

Don Rush
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In 2015 the ballot voters see in Salisbury could look much different than in the past.

Aside from all five seats and the Mayor being up for election, under a new redistricting plan they would only be voting for one city council member.

That’s the result of a vote last night by the City Council to divide the city up into five separate districts with two minority-majority districts.

Currently there is an at-large district that puts four council members on the council and only one from a minority-majority district.

Council president Jake Day who supported the measure said, “Morally I think it’s the right thing to do, because you are giving people a greater chance of being elected to serve their community from their neighborhood and a greater chance to access their elected official and representative.”

Dissenting

The final vote was 4-to-1 with the lone dissenter being council member Tim Spies who warned that special interests might manipulate voters in these districts.

Credit official photo
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official photo
Council member Tim Spies

“Keep an eye out,” he said. “Make sure that you are not being pulled by the nose by somebody who has a special interest in getting land, in getting changes in our ordinances to try to make it easier or more lucrative for those special interests.”

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Interview with Council member Tim Spies

The plan must still get approval from a federal court.

Don Rush is the News Director at Delmarva Public Media. An award-winning journalist, Don reports major local issues of the day, from sea level rise, to urban development, to the changing demographics of Delmarva.