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Tucson independent to lead redistrict panel

Mar. 2, 2011

by Mary Jo Pitzl

The Arizona Republic

The Independent Redistricting Commission is ready to begin its mission of redrawing the state's political boundaries now that it has a chairwoman.

On Tuesday, the four political appointees on the commission picked Colleen Coyle Mathis as chairwoman. Mathis is a registered independent from Tucson. Her fellow commissioners picked her after more than an hour of closed-door deliberations.

"Wow! It's an awesome responsibility," Mathis said after the unanimous vote.

Her appointment tips the balance of the five-member commission to Pima County, with three members from Tucson and two from Phoenix in Maricopa County. In a nod to the geographic disparity between their homes, Mathis jokingly suggested they meet at the Dairy Queen in Casa Grande, a midpoint between the two cities.

Mathis has worked with a number of non-profits, most recently in her current role as government-funding manager for University Physicians Healthcare, the state's largest physicians group.

She holds an economics degree from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and a master's degree in environmental management from Yale University.

Mathis was one of five independent voters considered for the post.

Commissioner Linda McNulty said the decision was a difficult one.

Onlookers interpreted the fairly long deliberations as a sign of dissent among the commissioners, who are charged by a voter mandate with redrawing legislative and congressional boundaries, including carving out a ninth congressional seat.

But McNulty said she and her colleagues went through each of the five candidates, discussing the pros and cons of their appointment.

Mathis must now organize the commission, including such nuts and bolts as finding office space and getting equipment. She said a website will be set up soon to inform the public about the commission's next meeting, which has not yet been set.