At Tuesday, July 1st's General Government and Planning (GGP) Committee meeting, CivicLex Executive Director Richard Young and Deputy Director Kit Anderson will share plans to host a Civic Assembly in 2026.
What is a Civic Assembly?
In 2026, CivicLex will bring together a group of Lexington residents, selected by lottery, to review and make recommendations about the City Charter.
The model is based on a Citizens’ Assembly — think of it like jury duty for public policy. A randomly selected group of residents meets several times to learn about a topic, hear from experts, deliberate, and create consensus recommendations.
This New Yorker article explores a similar Citizens’ Assembly in Oregon focused on youth homelessness.
Over a series of meetings in February and March 2026, Assembly members will explore the question:
“What changes should be made to the Charter to improve representation, trust, and participation in local government?”
The City Charter is essentially Lexington’s local constitution. It lays out how government is structured, what it’s allowed to do, and the rules it must follow. This fall, CivicLex will run a public engagement process, asking residents to weigh in on what changes to the Charter the Assembly should consider. These could include:
Changes to Council: redistricting, term limits, election timing, compensation, and the number of districts
Public engagement processes, future Charter review requirements, and other ideas suggested by residents
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Watch the meeting: The General Government and Planning Committee will meet Tuesday, July 1st at 1pm in Council Chambers. You can attend in person or watch live on LexTV.
Who will be in the Assembly, and how are they chosen?
The Assembly will include 30 Lexingtonians — two from each of the city’s 12 Council districts, plus six at-large members.
Over 6,000 letters will be mailed to randomly selected households in fall 2025.
From those who respond, multiple groups of 30 randomized people will be created that reflect the city’s demographics, including age, race, gender, and political affiliation.
One of those groups of 30 will then be randomly selected to be the Assembly.
Members will be compensated for their time and provided with childcare and transportation support.
What’s CivicLex’s role?
CivicLex will organize the Assembly, provide background research, invite a range of expert and public perspectives, and facilitate conversations to help participants build deep understanding before making recommendations.
CivicLex will not provide or advocate for specific recommendations.
We will ask Council to review and respond to whatever recommendations come from the Assembly.
The Assembly is fully funded by CivicLex. No city funds are being requested.
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How can you get involved? Reach out to CivicLex Deputy Director Kit Anderson via email here.
