Public hearing Tuesday on proposed ordinance establishing Hayward City Council districts, sequence of elections

The Hayward City Council is scheduled to hold a special meeting at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 1, to receive public comment on a proposed ordinance establishing the boundaries of Council legislative districts and determining which two district seats will be up for election first in 2026.

Introduction of the ordinance and the public hearing Tuesday will be the start of the final stage in Hayward's transition from at-large elections for Council to a geographic, district-based system. To date, four public hearings have been held, primarily to gather community input on the drawing of district boundaries.

Under the new system, Hayward's mayor will continue to be elected by at-large, citywide votes, with the City's six non-mayoral Council seats decided in district elections. Terms of office under the new system will remain four years.

The move is taking place pursuant to an agreement settling a lawsuit brought against Hayward under the California Voting Rights Act (CVRA). The lawsuit contended that at-large elections for municipal office in Hayward unlawfully dilute the voting power of Asian Americans. The Hayward Unified School District and Hayward Area Recreation and Park District (HARD) have settled similar legal challenges.

Hayward's last at-large contest for non-mayoral City Council seats will take place Nov. 5 during the upcoming municipal and presidential election.

Final legislative action affirming the City's change to district-based elections is scheduled to take place Oct. 8-with two of the six non-mayoral Council seats to come up for election in November 2026 and the remaining four two years later in November 2028.

To see the final draft map of the proposed six non-mayoral Council districts as well as data on the demographic make-up of each district's citizen voting-age population, go online here.

For more information on Hayward's transition to district-based elections for Council, visit https://maphayward.org.