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School
Board chooses new district lines Edgefielddaily.com web posted March 30, 2005 Staff reporting The Edgefield County School Board has approved a new redistricting map for county school board representatives. The new map divides four of the five towns and communities by splitting their voting lines. Included in the split communities are Merriwether, Bettis Academy, Trenton, and Edgefield. In addition, two long term board members will face each other in upcoming elections. Under the new plan former board chairman Brad Covar and long term member Andy Livingston will be forced to face each other in upcoming elections. Meriwether board member, and vice chairman, Scott Chitty (district seven) says due to “the demographic break down we can’t break it up,” according to local areas or communities being drawn. Chitty stated that the South Carolina Budget and Control Board, who oversees the mapping, breaks the demographics up according to “demographic data blocks” and said that splitting up the communities is not a directive of the school board but that it happens. “We had to keep the demographic data in consideration when considering the maps,” Chitty said. When asked about pitting board member Brad Covar against Andy Livingston Chitty said, “The reason we did that was, no matter what we did it put two members against each other.” Chitty stated he and committee members Andy Livingston and James Bibbs Jr. went over the maps prior to introduction and they (Bibbs and Chitty) didn’t agree on the map put forth by Livingston so they introduced Plan A. Vice chairman Scott Chitty stated each district was divided into a population and demographic target of 3188 residents, plus or minus 3%. Chitty stated, “We have three majority black districts; districts one, three, and five, and four white districts, districts two, four, six, and seven.” Chitty cited the Justice Department regulation of “one man one vote” being a major concern during the redistricting debate. When asked if he felt the Justice Department and the legislators would approve the map he stated, “I can’t say what they will do,” stating that he and board member James Bibbs Jr. had, “met with the legislators and told them we may produce a map that may put two incumbents against each other,” and that the representatives, “were responsive” to the plan. Edgefield County School Board chairwoman Sallie Cooks stated, “Ideally this is not something we want to do,” when asked about splitting districts. Cooks stated that she preferred the districts remain community based but that, “sometimes you have to realize that we are here to serve the entire county and not just our specific district.” Cooks also stated that every map she had seen forced two sitting representatives against each other and that it in the end it would put, “either Lousie Talbert against Brad Covar or Brad (Covar) against Andy (Livingston) and this map (plan A) is the one that won.” When asked if she felt splitting the communities diluted the representation Cooks stated, “No, not if you have the right motive. We are there to represent the whole, not just our district- we need to do what is best for the children.” Other board members who were contacted either did not return calls for comment or declined to offer statements on the record. Return to
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