Moving to a district system may make it easier for a resident of Belle Haven, with a predominantly Latino and black population, to get elected to the council.

To avoid a successful lawsuit, the city could convert to a by-district voting system, which would divide the city into voting districts, one for each member of the council. The voters would vote only for candidates who reside in their district and are seeking election to that district's council seat.

On Aug. 21, the city received a letter from attorney Kevin Shenkman of Malibu-based law firm Shenkman & Hughes, who did not identify his clients. He alleges that the city's at-large election system violates the California Voting Rights Act because the voting preferences of racial minority residents are not being reflected on the council.

Menlo Park faces the threat of a lawsuit challenging the way it elects City Council members. To avoid a lawsuit that the city's attorney thinks could be successful, the city is examining optional election systems. The first of several public meetings to discuss the options will be held Monday, Oct. 30, starting at 7 p.m. in the Civic Center council chambers at 701 Laurel St.

However, for Menlo Park to pursue this or other alternative voting systems, the city would have to change its constitution from a "general law city" to a "charter city," which would require taking the matter to voters.

Ranked-choice voting is a system in which voters are given the option to rank candidates, depending on the number of seats available. Any candidate who gains enough first-choice votes to cross a threshold to win (more than 50 percent of the votes for one open seat, 33 percent for two open seats or 25 percent for three open seats) would give up any excess votes beyond that threshold to be redistributed to voters' second-choice picks, and, if necessary, redistributed again until the proper number of candidates have crossed the threshold to win.

Election reform advocate organizations such as FairVote or Californians for Electoral Reform support another election system change, as described at a community meeting the organizations held in Menlo Park on Oct. 7 : ranked-choice voting.

If the council decides to move forward with a by-district voting system, city staff will seek further public comment about what criteria a demographer should use to draft district boundaries. More community meetings would be held to discuss such boundaries.

The council may also consider changing the number of seats on the council or electing a mayor at-large rather than the current system in which the council elects one of its own to serve as mayor for a year.

Monday: Comment sought on changing Menlo Park council elections