Yinka Faleti for the St. Louis Post-Dispatch: “Why I support St. Louis Prop R”

St. Louisans and the Board of Aldermen deserve policies that prioritize needs of the people of our city — not special interests. Additionally, voters need to be able to hold our leaders accountable. Unfortunately, laws currently on the books make both of these imperatives difficult. It’s time to course-correct.

That’s why I will vote “yes” for Proposition R next Tuesday in St. Louis city, as it would increase accountability, transparency and ethics at the Board of Aldermen.

Proposition R, which stands for reform, is supported by a diverse grassroots coalition, including the League of Women Voters, St. Louis Association of Community Organizations, Show Me Integrity, Forward Through Ferguson, Women’s Voices Raised for Social Justice, Missouri Faith Voices, voting rights attorney Denise Lieberman, Rev. Darryl Gray, several alderpersons, and many others.

Proposition R would:

• Prohibit alderpersons from taking official action where they have a personal or financial conflict of interest related to the legislation being considered.

• Give power to draw ward boundary maps to an independent citizens commission composed of diverse, qualified city voters who must hold public hearings and keep neighborhoods together.

• Prohibit lobbyists, aldermanic board members and others with conflicts of interest from serving on the commission.

• Prohibit the Board of Aldermen from overriding the will of the people on voting methods for municipal offices.

This package of needed reforms is the product of a thorough, patient, community-driven process. Over a span of more than two years, coalition members created it in consultation with national experts, informed by principles such as ensuring that every St. Louisan has a fair voice in government that comes from equitable representation of, by and for the people.

They surveyed more than 800 St. Louisans, identifying powerful proposals that enjoy broad support. Coalition members announced they could launch a push for the new ballot initiative only if they secured $100,000 in a crowdfunding campaign. Supporters stepped up, and now Proposition R is on the ballot.

Why should the people of St. Louis City want such a change?

Consider gerrymandering, which is a democracy-blocker not only at the national and state levels, but also here at the local level.

Voters should pick their representatives — not the other way around. Why does this matter? Aldermanic board members have great power in determining St. Louisans’ future. For example, they currently vote on their own district lines, allowing them to pick those who would vote in their wards and exclude potential opposition. That minimizes voters’ ability to hold leaders accountable when they fail to act in the public interest. It also allows board members to shift ward boundaries for political reasons, such as to try to block or remove opponents from office.

One of the most consequential provisions of Prop R would be the creation of an independent citizens redistricting commission that must keep communities and neighborhoods together. Any city voter can apply to serve on the commission — except lobbyists, politicians, and those with conflicts of interest — and the open application process would require at least one applicant from every ward.

A panel of retired judges would randomly select the first four commission members from the applicant pool. Those four would then select the remaining five members from the pool to balance race, gender, geography and other considerations of diversity.

The commission would be required to hold public hearings and develop a map with professional assistance from the city’s Planning and Urban Design Agency. The commission would present the map for public comment and make changes based upon comment and feedback before finalizing.

A second important provision concerns curbing conflicts of interest. It is shockingly true that aldermanic board members are not required to recuse themselves from voting on legislation when they have conflicts of interest. This leads to special interests calling the shots and contributes to a lack of cohesive vision for our region. The policy in Prop R is based on national best practices: board members must recuse themselves when they have a personal or financial conflict of interest that diverges from the public interest. This is, in my opinion, simple, straightforward and common sense.

People over politics. That’s what Prop R is all about.

Read the op-ed on its original platform here.