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More likely than not, voters in Sarasota County will soon vote again on the principle of single-member districts. Perhaps they should be happy county officials let an entire election cycle pass by before trying to reverse the will of voters— though they notably along the way showed the worst way the process could be corrupted.

The rationale for putting this measure up again will be that voters simply did not understand how single-member representation works. That’s the argument made by members of the County Commission and by the Charter Review Board. Always, this comes with anecdotal evidence that people ended up receiving their ballot at a later point and were shocked not to see every county commission race on the ballot.

Of course, from decades covering elections, I assure you there’s always people confused by something with the ballot. They see television ads for a House District race then realize they live in a separate jurisdiction. Sometimes voters don’t realize what county they live in until a sample ballot arrives, or that they live outside the limits of the city where they work and shop each day. But once it’s explained, people do in fact understand jurisdictions exist. They may wish they could vote on who their U.S. senator is every year, but understand they cannot.

There’s far more complicated issues, ones where ballot language certainly seemed more tricky, that have passed and stood up in court. And unlike a range of issues in Florida’s constitution from pig coop regulations to marijuana policy to whether Florida needs a high-speed train from Tampa to Daytona, the fundamentals of how county commissioners are elected and who they represent belong in the county charter.

I don’t know if voters will register a different opinion on single-member districts if the question gets posed a second time. It happened in Florida with high-speed rail. Indeed, it’s happened in Sarasota with this issue before. But I suspect since nearly 60% of voters in 2018 supported the change, it’s favored to pass.

Frankly, there’s not much reason for voters to change their mind. Both those who favored and those who disliked the measure the last time around hoped or feared this would fundamentally remake the commission. At least for now, that just hasn’t happened. The only county incumbents on the ballot were reelected in 2020. Term limits forced the only change, with Ron Cutsinger succeeding Charles Hines because a different charter amendment prevented Hines from running again.

The only fresh argument to be made against single-member districts would be the funny business county commissioners employed to undermine the measure. Redistricting two years early showed any incumbent worried about their electoral prospects, as County Commissioner Mike Moran had every reason to be, can simply vote for new lines and pick their voters. In that case, black neighborhoods were redrawn into a county commission seat not up for reelection. Once census numbers come in, expect them to be drawn right back into County Commission District 1.

Which gets to the bottom line here. Sarasota County simply hasn’t properly tried single-member voting out for size. With redistricting inevitable again this year, voters arguably won’t get the chance to elect commissioners without incumbent interference until 2024.

Maybe the charter amendment voters need to advance before then is one that denies county commissioners the chance to undermine democracy so thoroughly. Make district lines untouchable except during Census years. Then voters can send a clear message on representation.

And maybe it will be one commissioners can understand.

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