Arkansas § 14-61-109 - Determination of ward and district positions.

§ 14-61-109. Determination of ward and district positions.

Ward positions and positions for larger designated districts that overlap wards shall be determined as follows: If a city affected by this chapter chooses to select some of its members by ward, the governing body shall divide the territory of the city into the number of wards having substantially equal population, according to the most recently published federal decennial census of population in the city, equal to the number of members of the governing body to be elected from wards; If a city affected by this chapter chooses to select some of its members by larger designated districts that overlap wards, the governing body shall divide the territory of the city into the number of districts having substantially equal population, according to the most recent federal decennial census, equal to the number of members of the governing body to be elected from districts; The governing body shall complete its apportionment of the respective districts or wards from which members of the governing body of the cities shall be elected and shall file it with the county clerk of the county and with the city clerk of the applicable city; The districts or wards so established, unless changed or modified by order of a court of competent jurisdiction or by ordinance approved by a two-thirds vote of the governing body of the city under § 14-61-107, shall be the districts or wards of the city from which each of the respective members of the governing body of the city are to be elected; Following each federal decennial census of population and following any special federal census of population within a particular city, if there has been a substantial change in the population of the districts and wards from the preceding federal census, the governing body shall reapportion the districts and wards in each city in the manner and procedure as provided in this section from which the members of the governing body are to be elected; and Notwithstanding the provisions of any other act, candidates for ward positions shall be residents of the ward they wish to represent, and candidates for district positions shall be residents of the district they wish to represent. Unless the electors choose otherwise, only those qualified electors residing in a ward may vote on a candidate from that ward. Unless the electors choose otherwise, all qualified electors of the city may vote on candidates for each larger designated district that overlaps a ward.