Ocoee appointee briefs commission on Orange County's mid-decade redistricting

Angel Dela Portia, Ocoee's representative on the Orange County Mid-Decennial Redistricting Committee, briefed the commission on the county's plan to redraw district boundaries after voters approved increasing the number of commissioner districts from six to eight.

Dela Portia said the county appointed 15 committee members, including three mayoral appointees and two appointees from each commissioner, to review maps and propose new district lines. Committee meetings are scheduled weekly through September, and maps and meeting materials will be posted on the county's redistricting website, he said. "There's actually access to the mapping software, where you can go on here, mapping tools, and get set up, and then set up your maps and all that. You can communicate with members of the committee and submit your own maps," Dela Portia said.

Dela Portia said the mid-decade change is a consequence of a 2024 ballot measure that added two districts; as districts grow smaller the county expects about a 75,000-person reduction per district based on 2020 census data, with District 1 losing the most population.

Why it matters: Redistricting will change Orange County electoral boundaries and could affect county representation for Ocoee residents. Dela Portia said Ocoee was previously split between districts and that the 2021 redistricting put the city in a single district; the new maps could again change which county district contains all or parts of Ocoee.

How to participate: Dela Portia said the Orange County Redistricting website will host maps, meeting videos and tools for public submissions and that meetings are open for in-person attendance and online viewing. He said the committee will present maps over the summer and he will report back to the commission.

Ending: Commissioners thanked Dela Portia and encouraged residents to review maps and participate in the process.