Here’s a question: If 45.5 percent of Riverside County residents are Latino and half the population is female, why is it represented by five white guys?

The redistricting process the county is going through this year won’t answer that question or change anything soon. It’s more a factor of who can build reputation and a power base.

In fact, change is rare on the Board of Supervisors. With no term limits, they tend to stay in office a long time. Bob Buster of Riverside has been there since 1993, John Tavaglione of Riverside since 1995, Marion Ashley of Perris since 2002 and Jeff  Stone of Temecula since 2004.

Roy Wilson represented the Coachella Valley from 1995 until he resigned shortly before his death in 2009, suggesting then-state Sen. John Benoit succeed him. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger appointed Benoit, who was challenged only by former Palm Springs police Chief Gary Jeandron. Benoit won.

Because of differing  growth patterns, there will be dramatic changes in the districts. Stone’s 3rd District, which includes Hemet and Temecula, grew fastest at 66 percent, adding 209,091 residents from 2000 to 2010. It needs to lose about 80,000 residents to reach the target of roughly 438,000 for each district. Ashley’s 5th District needs to lose about 7,700 residents.

The big question for the Coachella Valley is how much of Desert Hot Springs can be added to Benoit’s 4th District, which grew the slowest and needs to add about 41,000 residents. The city is now in Ashley’s 5th District.

The draft proposal shifts most of the city into the 5th, but if Desert Hot Springs achieves its goal of annexing west to Highway 62, much of the city will be split between the two districts.

While we appreciate the sense of order in having all nine Coachella Valley cities in one district, The Desert Sun is happy to have two voices on the county board representing the interests of the valley.

We endorsed Benoit  and he’s doing a good job. But the Coachella Valley has some strong Latino representatives such as Assemblyman V. Manuel Pérez and Coachella Mayor Eduardo Garcia. We hope as the elections come along, Latinos will pursue seats at the county’s most important table.

A significant portion of the constituency deserves a voice.