About Columbus Districts
Columbus Districts is an independent, nonpartisan civic resource covering the nine residential districts of the Columbus City Council.
What is this site?
Columbus Districts provides a single reference point for anyone who wants to understand how the Columbus City Council's district system works, who represents each district, and how districts compare on demographics, housing, income, and elections. Every data point links back to its source, and the full methodology is documented on the Data & Methodology page.
Why does Columbus have residential districts?
On May 8, 2018, Columbus voters approved Issue 3, a charter amendment creating residential districts and expanding City Council from seven seats to nine; about 75% voted yes. The first district elections were held in 2023, and the system has now completed two election cycles (2023 and 2025). Members must live in the district they represent, but under the current hybrid system every voter in the city helps elect all nine.
For a full explanation of how the system works — including term structure, lot-drawing for staggered terms, and council powers — see How It Works.
Where does the data come from?
The primary demographic data comes from the American Community Survey (ACS) 2020–2024 5-Year Estimates, published by the U.S. Census Bureau. Because Columbus's council districts do not align with any standard Census geography, district-level figures are aggregated from census block groups, apportioned to districts by 2020-Census block population using the official block-to-district assignment for the 2023 council map. The “Columbus” comparison for medians and unemployment is the Census Bureau’s own published figure for the whole city.
The public-safety section shows Applied Geographic Solutions CrimeRisk indexes, obtained through Esri: modeled estimates of the relative risk of each type of crime, not counts of reported crimes.
The site uses a snapshot/vintage system that stores demographic data from each ACS release as a separate snapshot, so districts can be compared across time as new ACS vintages are published. See the Data & Methodology page for full detail.
How are election results sourced?
Election results come from the Franklin County Board of Elections, cross-referenced with local reporting. The council-district vote totals shown on the Elections page are certified figures taken from the Board's official post-election canvass, and each election links to the certified canvass document it came from. Where a race is still awaiting certification, it is labeled as such rather than shown as final.
Who maintains this site?
Columbus Districts is an independent, nonpartisan project. It is not affiliated with the City of Columbus, Columbus City Council, or any political campaign.
I found an error. How do I report it?
Every district page has a Suggest an Edit form at the bottom. Corrections to demographic data, election results, council-member information, and area-commission details are all welcome.
How do I get in touch?
For questions, feedback, or corrections about this site, use the contact form or email info@columbusdistricts.com. That address reaches the Columbus Districts team, not the City or City Council, and we can't pass messages along to council members.
To reach your council member, use the link to their official page on your district's page, the City's Council Directory, or call the Council Welcome Center at (614) 645-7380. Columbus City Council does not have a single shared public email inbox.
Last reviewed: October 21, 2026