The Gresham Outlook recently reported on former Gresham City Councilor Richard Strathern's effort to change that city's council seats from at large to district representation.
In the article, Gresham City Councilor David Widmark claimed "“I actually was living here in Gresham in the 1980s when we had districts,” Widmark said. “We couldn’t get good, qualified candidates to run. That’s why we changed to at-large; you don’t get some of the stronger candidates who can represent the whole of the issues.”
Widmark failed to mention that
Gresham's population in 1980 was 33,000, according to the US Census. As of
2010, Gresham's population is now over 105,000. Gresham, now one of Oregon's
largest cities, should have no problem attracting great candidates for district
elections of their city council.
