While the Independent Citizens Redistricting Commission continues to take public comment on 10 potential remedy maps for seven Detroit state House districts, questions abound about what might happen if the commission fails to deliver and a court-appointed special master draws the map.
There are also outstanding questions on when that special master map might become public and if residents will have a chance to weigh in on the special master-drawn lines if they are considered by the court.
Whether the special master map was made public early in the process, held until it was clear the commission couldn’t meet the order, or if it was made public with limited or no public comment, having someone other than the commission adopting a map doesn’t necessarily reflect the will of the voters, said Voters Not Politicians Executive Director Jamie Lyons-Eddy.
VNP was instrumental in getting the proposal off the ground and across the finish line and has been a champion for the commission and its maps even when it had distinct concerns about the new process, the draft lines being drawn or what would ultimately be adopted in 2021.
With that in mind, Lyons-Eddy told Gongwer in an interview that “if one person is drawing these maps, that doesn’t just go against what Voters Not Politicians cares about, it would go against what 61 percent of Michiganders voted for in 2018, which is a fair, transparent process with public input.”
“I think it’s absolutely critical that the commission (draws and) adopts the maps that ultimately put to use,” she said. “It’s understandable that they knew Michigan needed to have maps (in play for the 2024 election), so I guess I can see why they decided to put in a backup plan. But this commission has stepped up, including, I’ll point out three brand new commissioners who were drawn one day and showed up for work the next day, and were sworn in and have completely dug into the process along with their colleagues. This commission has done exactly what we entrusted them to do.”
This story was originally published by Gongwer. Read more here: https://www.gongwer.com/news/index.cfm?a=630380101
