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Horry County鈥檚 new map for county council and school board districts could be finalized in just a few weeks.

Council members on Tuesday unanimously approved , which needs two more votes to take effect. No council members voiced any concerns about the latest lines and no residents spoke during the public input portion of the meeting.

鈥淎s we moved through this process, we made edits after every public hearing,鈥� said Horry County Councilman Tyler Servant, who chaired the committee that worked with county staff to draw the new maps. 鈥淗opefully we鈥檝e gotten to a point now where we have a map that can be approved by county council and adopted.鈥�

Every 10 years, county officials redraw the lines for voting districts to account for population changes.

The process requires taking the county鈥檚 population (351,029 people) and dividing it by the number of council/school board seats (11). Officials then seek to draw districts that each have about the same number of people, ideally within 2% of that target.

But multiple factors must be considered when creating those lines. County officials don鈥檛 want to make a district with two council members or one without an incumbent. Legally, they cannot create districts that discriminate based on race, and they also must draw districts that are contiguous. Maintaining historic communities, compactness and preserving political subdivisions are also considerations.

鈥楾his is not final鈥�: Redistricting committee members seek changes to proposed map

The central criticism is that the proposed map would divide voters in historic Black neighborhoods among multiple districts, thus diluting their voting power.

Early in the redistricting process last fall, the committee faced criticism from Black leaders in the Myrtle Beach area. Those leaders said the map diluted Black voting strength by splitting up historic communities that are currently in one council district (District 3). The revised map included more of those communities in a single district (District 2), though not all of them.

However, the revisions eased most of the leaders鈥� concerns. The Myrtle Beach NAACP president didn鈥檛 even speak at the committee鈥檚 final public hearing.

鈥淲e feel pretty comfortable with it,鈥� Myrtle Beach NAACP President Mickey James said of the revised map.

One criticism from citizens that wasn鈥檛 addressed came from Carolina Forest residents who objected to the map placing most of that community in a single council and school board district (District 3). Currently, the community is divided among four council/school board districts, and residents have argued that they have more influence under the present system.

However, District 3 councilman Dennis DiSabato, who lives in Carolina Forest, said the new map is an improvement.

鈥淚t makes sense,鈥� he said. 鈥淭hat community鈥檚 got needs. There鈥檚 a lot of differing opinions even within that community as to whether or not it makes sense to have one councilman who is focused entirely on the needs of Carolina Forest versus four different council members who have an interest in Carolina Forest to some degree. At the end of the day, more often than not, those three other council members are looking to me and sometimes Bill Howard for guidance on what to do because we know the community better than they do.鈥�

The council is expected to take its second vote on the map on Feb. 1 and the final one on Feb. 15. There will be a public hearing before one of those votes, though county officials have not said when that hearing will be.

Public hearings are typically held at the second vote, but Servant said he won鈥檛 be at the Feb. 1 meeting and he鈥檚 not sure if his peers will want to hold the hearing in his absence since he chaired the redistricting committee.

If county leaders follow their projected schedule, the new maps would be finalized in ahead of filing for elections. Filing opens in March. For more details on the maps, visit聽.