After nearly two weeks of deliberation from ASUI senators, the senate passed a bill to end redistricting by colleges, a rule that also went into effect for the first and only time the same night after seven new senators were elected.
The bill repealed a section from the ASUI Rules and Regulations that outlines how the senate seats are apportioned by colleges and their respective populations.
The rules allotted one seat to every college at the University of Idaho. Colleges also received an additional senate seat for every 10 percent it makes up of the undergraduate student body.
Former senator and current director of policy McKenzie MacDonald spearheaded the rules as they were last year. Though MacDonald expressed disappointment after the change was repealed, she said she was excited to see what would come next.
“It’s disappointing, but, ultimately that’s what the new senate decided and I’m looking forward to seeing what they do going forward,” MacDonald said.
Members of the ASUI Senate Standing Committee on Rules and Regulations voted 2-2-1 earlier that day, meaning the bill was released to the senate without recommendation. The debate moved back and forth on the senate floor Wednesday night before the Senate voted 11-3 to repeal the redistricting rules.
Sen. Jordan Kizer referenced the work of past senators who created the section in the Rules and Regulations as a reason he voted against the move to repeal. He said the redistricting rules in question were a step in the right direction.
“I believe that it is a disservice to our constituents and to the senate that came before us who spent, from my understanding, years looking at this issue and discussing it, and coming to the conclusion that they did. And then to spend two weeks looking at this and decide that we don’t like it, we don’t agree with the conclusion that was yielded before,” Kizer said.
Sen. Tanner Beymer, who said he has always been opposed to redistricting and called the rules “a train wreck waiting to happen,” countered that argument. He said past senators are irrelevant when voting on a bill.
“They’re gone. In two weeks, I’ll be gone. They’re irrelevant. In two weeks, I’ll be irrelevant. But for right now, I’m not. And back then, they weren’t. And you don’t owe them anything,” Beymer said.
The main debate of the night was whether students identify with the colleges they are part of enough to be represented by them in the senate.
Sen. Haleigh Sims-Douglas said she is part of the College of Education, but spent her first year-and-a-half at UI as a part of the College of Engineering. Sims-Douglas was against the new redistricting rules. She said students bring unique experiences to the table aside from what they are going to school for.
“I sincerely, sincerely, sincerely believe that belonging to a specific college does not give a student any more right to represent that college specifically,” Sims-Douglas said.
Sen. Catherine Yenne echoed the sentiments of Sims-Douglas. “I think that supporting this bill is going to emphasize that we are more than our college, and I think that’s an important statement for us to make,” Yenne said.
Other than the redistricting bill, the senate also considered a resolution denouncing violence and hate speech on campus. Sen. Maria Meza said the purpose of the bill was to promote and sustain an environment on campus that protects students.
“I think it’s really important as representatives to stand behind something like that,” Meza said.
Sen. Sam Balas said the senate should talk about violence and hate speech and that they should not wait for the resolution to reach perfection before passing it.
“It is our duty to ensure their (minority communities) safety, ensure that they do not feel harmed, our duty to ensure that they have a safe and protected education here at the University of Idaho,” Balas said.
But other senators said they could not support it in its current form due to the politically charged wording in the bill. Those senators welcomed further discussion of the bill in the future.
Taylor Nadauld can be reached at [email protected] and on Twitter @tnadauldarg