Community of Interest

What is a Community of Interest (COI)?

A Community of Interest is a group of people that: share common social or economic interests, live in a geographically definable area, and should be included within a single district for purposes of effective and fair representation in future elections.

There are some communities of interest that are considered “protected classes” in that they have rights through state or federal civil rights or voting rights laws. Some examples of protected classes in districting would be ethnic and racial minorities such as a concentration of Latinx, Asian, or African American people.

There are other potential COI that can also be considered in redistricting, such as: senior citizens, college students, people who live in a particular neighborhood, or even people who share concerns such as parents with young children, bicycle enthusiasts, topic interest group, etc. It does not include relationships with political parties, incumbents, or political candidates.