Strange lines

All of which puts in some context the latest hoo-ha to roil the no-longer placid waters of Peninsula politics following the final approval of the new boundaries for the two congressional districts that cover our wealthy, if irregular, terrain.

The most interesting is the new 16th Congressional District, which takes in the entirety of the San Mateo County coast, from Pacifica to the Santa Cruz County line. It also includes in its eastern portion a substantial slice of Silicon Valley’s wealthiest communities, from Atherton to south of Los Gatos, another good example of communities with common interests and demographics.

The 16th CD is represented by Congresswoman Anna Eshoo and, by the way, it is likely it will continue to be so.

Following the adoption of the new lines by the California Citizens Redistricting Commission, Eshoo issued a statement via Twitter: “I’m honored to confirm that I’ll be running for reelection in ’22 in the newly drawn CD-16 — a district that includes the heart of Silicon Valley, my home in Palo Alto and my district office in Palo Alto. I’m pleased that the new CD-16 includes communities such as Half Moon Bay and Pacifica that I have previously had the privilege of representing as a San Mateo County supervisor” from 1982 to 1992.

The significance here lies in Eshoo’s almost-offhand announcement of her reelection campaign, indicating it was never a question, despite growing rumors she would be stepping down.

The rumors, no doubt, were prompted by Congresswoman Jackie Speier’s retirement announcement, and fueled by an entire squad of would-be candidates who keep waiting for Eshoo to hang it up. But while Speier and Eshoo long have been friends and colleagues, there are important differences between them as members of Congress. I will get into that in a future column.

In any event, Eshoo is staying, there being no reason to think she will face a serious challenger.

As for the Speier district, the new 15th Congressional District runs from Daly City to East Palo Alto. In other words, despite being split off from the coast, most of San Mateo County — essentially east of Interstate 280 — is contained in one congressional district for the first time in a decade.

And that means the race to replace Speier between three Democrats — Burlingame Councilmember Emily Beach, Assemblymember Kevin Mullin and San Mateo County Supervisor David Canepa — is largely unchanged. Although to the extent he engages in political introspection, Canepa might regret the time he spent recently campaigning on the coast.

Either way, the new congressional lines kept the Canepa campaign busy enough this week with some statements that can best be described as impulsive.

The Redistricting Commission unanimously adopted the new lines Monday night. Done. Finished. Final.

Tuesday morning, Canepa fired off a letter, signed in his role as president of the Board of Supervisors and on official letterhead, protesting to the new lines that, he said in a brief telephone interview, do damage to “my congressional district.”

Specifically, the letter protested congressional district lines that ran from Pacifica to San Luis Obispo, which, of course, they do not. They did in one iteration — but not in the one adopted by the commission Monday. Speaking on behalf of board colleagues who, in fact, may have been surprised by this letter, Canepa writes, “We respectfully request that you adopt one of the earlier versions” of the new lines.

A staffer attached a note to the letter indicating the commission did not adopt the lines that had Canepa in high dudgeon. In a nice touch, Canepa attached a note of his own instructing someone — maybe his staff, maybe me — to “Please fact check this.” In another note, he said the “letter is perfect.”

There is no sign that any of this will deter Canepa, whose enthusiasm for campaigning is unbridled.

Meanwhile, as the new lines illustrate, and as is being discovered by local redistricting panels all over the county, an independent process guarantees districts that avoid political protection or gain for one political party or a single officeholder/incumbent.

But it is no guarantee against strange district lines, even if they seem geographically extreme.

Mark Simon is a veteran journalist, whose career included 15 years as an executive at SamTrans and Caltrain. He can be reached at marksimon@smdailyjournal.com.