Exploring the Effects of Single-Member Districts on an Urban Political System

Abstract

The decision in Yarbrough et al. v. City of Birmingham in 1989 resulted in Birmingham, Alabama, changing its nine-member city council from at-large to district elections to preserve minority (white) representation. Implementation of this court order produced the descriptive representation it was designed to attain but did not improve citizen perceptions of the quality of representation. It produced other changes in the conduct of city politics. Council candidates altered their campaign strategies to make themselves appear more sensitive to district-level concerns. Districts do not yet seem to have stimulated either turnout or greater competition in council elections.