Request By:
Honorable Gardner D. Wagers
Clark County Judge/Executive
Clark County Courthouse
P.O. Box 5
Winchester, Kentucky 40301
Opinion
Opinion By: Robert F. Stephens, Attorney General; By: Walter C. Herdman, Assistant Deputy Attorney General
This is in answer to your letter of January 13 in which you refer to the fact that there is an uneven balance between the twenty (20) voting precincts within the county; some having 400 voters, others having as many as 1200.
Your initial question is whether or not this inbalance violates the "one man-one vote" rule. The answer is "no" [OAG 76-745 enclosed] since voting precincts do not in themselves relate to the election of public officers except in so far as they are included within the geographical boundary of a political subdivision from which officers are elected, as for example, your magisterial districts. The election of magistrates from the various magisterial districts requires that each such district comply with the "one man-one vote" principle throughout the county.
Your next question concerns whether or not the county judge/executive is responsible for realigning election precincts. The answer to this question is also in the negative. Only the county board of elections is authorized to alter election precincts which, under a 1976 amendment to KRS 117.055, appears to require that such precinct lines conform to magisterial district lines. In this respect we are enclosing copies of OAG 77-126 and OAG 76-367 covering this question.
Your third question has been answered previously which refers to changing precinct boundary lines.
With respect to your fourth question concerning reapportionment of magisterial districts, the present statutes relating thereto were inadvertently repealed by the 1976 legislature, however, a number of counties have subsequently proceeded under the terms of KRS 25.700 even though the law presently is nonexistent. On the other hand, legislation has been introduced re-enacting this legislation with some modification and it might be feasible to delay reapportionment of the magisterial districts until such legislation is acted upon.
Of course, your precinct boundaries can be altered at any time in conformance with the present provisions of KRS 117.055.