The Baltimore County Council is poised to establish a commission to help redraw the political boundaries of council districts after voters this month overwhelmingly approved a ballot measure to expand the council from seven to nine members, the first expansion since 1956.

The voter-approved measure — Question A on the Nov. 5 ballot — changes the composition of each district from about 120,000 residents to about 95,000, with each council member losing and gaining precincts in the reshuffling.

Many residents, members of the General Assembly, and potential candidates for office criticized the maps that the council majority that backed expansion initially came up with, so the council passed an amendment allowing for public feedback to potentially alter the maps.

The legislation, which Chairman Izzy Patoka introduced this week, seeks to establish a redistricting commission by Jan. 21. It will include seven members, with each councilman appointing one. The commission will hold at least three public hearings between Jan. 21 and Oct. 1, the deadline for submitting the final plans. The bill that would establish the commission has four sponsors and will likely pass at the next council meeting Dec. 1.

“This is a historic moment for Baltimore County,” said Patoka, a Democrat who backed council expansion. “With the passage of Question A, there is a clear mandate from Baltimore County voters to move off the 1956 standard.”

The vote to expand the council was years in the making, and initially, only Patoka and Towson Democrat Mike Ertel supported it. Democrats Pat Young and Julian Jones were uncertain about the expansion, and then both of them wanted the council to grow by four members instead of two. Republicans David Marks and Wade Kach were uncertain, and Todd Crandell opposed it.

When Patoka realized he didn’t have Young’s and Jones’ support, he convinced the three Republicans to support the cause. They did, but the price of that support was new maps drawn to ensure the Republicans would not lose their influence on the narrowly divided council. The council currently has four Democrats and three Republicans, and the new maps include a 5-4 split.

The County Council has not reflected the increasing diversity of its population. The county is 33 percent Black, at least half female, 9% Latino and 7% Asian. And yet, only five women and two men have ever served on the council. The makeup is currently all male, with one Black councilman, Jones, representing a majority-Black district that was drawn two decades ago.

The 2026 election marks the best opportunity in decades, and possibly ever, to bring more diversity to the council. In addition to the two new seats, three of the current members — Jones, Patoka and Young — have expressed interest in running for county executive. Kach is retiring.

“With these measures in place the council can better reflect the demographics of Baltimore County,” Patoka said.

As for the six open seats in 2026, only two county residents have declared their candidacy so far — Del. Nino Mangione, who represents the Lutherville area and Sharonda Dillard-Huffman, a community activist from Essex.