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2001 Reprecincting
As part of the redistricting process that began with the 2000
census, new voting precincts were established in 2001. These new precincts
became effective on January 15, 2002. The first county-wide election using
new precincts was the June 4, 2002 primary.
The Auditor's Office does not establish precinct
boundaries. The boundaries were set by the respective city councils and,
for rural Johnson County, by the Board of Supervisors. The Auditor's
Office determines polling places for each precinct once the boundaries are
established.
Six precincts have been added to the county as a whole, for a
total of 57 voting precincts:
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25 in Iowa City (no change)
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6 in Coralville (two added)
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2 in North Liberty (one added)
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3 cities would each constitute a precinct (Solon, Tiffin and
University Heights)
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21 rural or rural-small city combined precincts (total of
three rural and small city precincts added)
Rules
and Guidelines
No precinct may have a census population over 3,500 people, or
more than 3,500 registered voters. Current
precincts and census population Precincts may not be divided between state
legislative districts at the time they are established. New precinct
boundaries also take into account shifts in population and new development.
The following changes to the precincts were required:
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The old Big Grove precinct (rural Big Grove township and the
city of Solon) had a population of 3,848 and has been split into two
precincts.
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The old Clear Creek precinct (rural Clear Creek township and
the city of Tiffin) was divided between two legislative districts and could
no longer be combined.
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The city of Coralville, which established four precincts in
1991, has a population of 15,123 which requires a minimum of five
precincts. Old Coralville precincts 2 and 4 had populations over
3,500. Coralville added two new precincts for a total of six. Coralville
Plan
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Old Iowa City precincts 8, 9, and 12 had populations over
3,500. Iowa City Plan
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The old Jefferson precinct (rural Jefferson township and the
cities of Swisher and Shueyville) had a population of 3,676 and was split
into two precincts.
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The city of North Liberty has a population of 5,374 and has
for the first time been split into two precincts. North
Liberty Plan
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Pleasant Valley and East Lucas South townships are in two
different legislative districts and could no longer be a combined precinct.
Public Hearings on Technical Changes
The Iowa Secretary of State’s office suggested technical changes to
reprecincting ordinances on the following items:
- The wording of the Iowa City, West Branch and Johnson County ordinances
describing the combination of East Lucas North and South with Iowa City
precincts 22 and 12, and the combination of the Johnson County portion of
West Branch with Scott Township.
- Voting precincts for parts of Penn and Clear Creek townships that are
"islands" created by North Liberty annexations.
New public hearings were held on these changes in December 2001.
Dates
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June 22, 2001: Governor Vilsack signed redistricting
legislation.
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August 21, 2001: Final vote by city council approving Iowa
City precincts.
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August 28, 2001: Final votes by city councils of Coralville
and North Liberty approving precincts.
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September 27, 2001: Final vote on rural
precincts by Board of Supervisors.
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November 6, 2001: The 2001 City
Election was the last election using the old
precincts established in 1991.
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January 15, 2002: New precincts
became effective.
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January 31-February 7, 2002: The Auditor's Office mailed
over 80,000 new voter cards listing new
precincts and districts to all registered voters in Johnson County.
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February 11, 2002: Political party
caucuses, using new precincts.
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April 9, 2002: The first election using new precincts was a North
Liberty special bond election.
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April 30, 2002: Deadline for school districts to establish
new school precincts.
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June 4, 2002: Primary
election. First county-wide election using new regular precincts
and new legislative districts.
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July 1, 2002: New school precincts became effective.
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September 10, 2002: School
election, using new school precincts.
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November 5, 2002: General
election using new regular precincts.
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