KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — On Election Day, Knoxville residents will choose the future of how their city council members are elected.
Voting "for" Charter Amendment 2 means the city will essentially turn to an entirely at-large system. Voters will be able to select candidates in any district, for both primary and general elections. Voting "against" the amendment means districts would only vote for their district’s city council members in primary and general elections.
It's the result of a law introduced by Republican Representative Elaine Davis, from Knoxville who said it was enacted, "to simply protect district voters’ choice of their district[‘s] representative.”
There are mixed feelings across Knox County – some urging voters to vote for the amendments and others urging city voters to vote against them. We spoke to people on both sides of the issue.
Support For the Amendment
Rev. Sam Brown, Pastor of the Logan Temple AME Zion Church, is urging a "yes" vote because he believes the city council would be more effective when it is accountable to all citizens of the city.
“I think it gives for a more effective governance here on our local level when you have a legislature that is accountable to the entire electorate, versus what we see happening on our county commission and on our school board and even at the state and national level," said Brown.
He also believes it will help prevent special interest groups from interfering in elections.
“We see having that having the citizens in the city to vote for all nine city councilpersons doesn’t really lend for any incentive for gerrymandering," he said.
Knoxville Vice Mayor Tommy Smith is also in favor of Charter Amendment 2. He said in a statement that, “Voting for the Amendment[s] will sustain the voting system we have now and maintain voter’s power to vote for all six District Councilmembers.”
This is in addition to the already at-large seats.
“All current District Councilmembers recommend voting for [Amendment 2],” said Smith.
Opposition to the Amendment
Democratic Representative Sam McKenzie, from Knoxville, is urging a vote against the amendment. He believes it could disenfranchise areas of Knoxville with smaller voter turnout.
“If you look at the numbers, at the end of the day, it's about the numbers. Our city is a quilt, a tapestry, and some districts vote strongly and other districts don’t necessarily vote as strongly but they still need representation that represents that district,” said McKenzie.
He believes passing the amendment will make Knoxville’s City Council less diverse – representing only a portion of those who live in the city.
“We are going to end up with a very uniform city council, I will say in eight years. And we will end up with a city council that represents a couple of districts and not the full city of Knoxville," he said.
The East Tennessee REALTORS group, a non-partisan association of realtors, is also urging voters to vote against the amendments. They believe that an essentially all-at-large system will take away neighborhood representation.
“If you go with the, what I would call, an 'at-large only model,' you kind of lose that neighbor aspect in which you get to choose who represents you on city council. Someone across town gets to choose who that person is," said Justin Bailey, president of the association.
They also believe that neighborhoods will be deprived of a voice in key decisions made in community developments and housing.
“Councilmembers make really key decisions on zoning, on property rights, on community development projects, on subdivisions, and ultimately, I feel like you want the people who you choose to be on city council to make those decisions for you,” said Bailey.