Hi Team,
In this week’s update, we have the latest from the MICRC’s remapping process and highlights of our concurrent pro-democracy work.
The Headlines
This week the Michigan Independent Citizens Redistricting Commission began the process of redrawing State House districts 1, 7, 8, 10, 11, 12 and 14, after a federal court invalidated those districts based on the Equal Protection Clause of the US Constitution. Under a timeline outlined by the court, the commission must propose new maps and make them available for public comment by February 2, 2024.
Meanwhile, the commission is continuing its appeal of the ruling to the US Supreme Court. On Wednesday we learned that Secretary of State Benson submitted a filing to the court in support of postponing any redraw until after the 2024 elections, arguing that changes to the district maps before the August primary election “threatens an orderly administration” of the election.
This morning, the Detroit News published my op-ed that explains why the MICRC is still the best (and only) option for adopting new maps in a transparent, impartial, and fair process.
In other VNP news, Voters Ed Fund is hosting another Voter Access Town Hall this month as part of the My City Votes 2024 campaign to engage and inform voters in communities that have been historically marginalized in our democracy. See “The Details” section for more information.
The Details
Redistricting
- This week the plaintiffs filed an objection to the choice of Dr. Bernard Grofman as Reviewing Special Master in this case. However, the court dismissed plaintiffs’ objections as “overblown” and officially appointed Dr. Grofman. As we mentioned last week, Voters Not Politicians feels that Dr. Grofman is an impartial and highly qualified expert and an excellent choice to review the remedial maps.
- Three new commissioners were randomly selected to fill seats left by recent resignations according to the process outlined in the constitutional amendment, and all three have jumped into this process to serve their state and deliver fair maps for voters!
- Reporters in the room have also noted that commissioners are very focused on their task and productive in recent meetings. At least two full sets of remedial maps have been created.
- The commissioners have asked their consultants for partisan fairness data as soon as possible so that the maps they have created can be reviewed.
- Three of the commissioners (Republicans Lange and Wagner and unaffiliated commissioner Szetela) attempted to justify pushing the redraw well beyond the voided districts into the greater southeast Michigan area. Fortunately, other commissioners and the commission’s attorneys agreed that any impact on surrounding districts should be minimized. VNP feels strongly that only the voided districts should be redrawn, and will keep a close eye on this situation.
- Public comment is available at the beginning of the morning session of each MICRC meeting. The upcoming meeting schedule can be found here.
- Voters Not Politicians volunteers and staff are closely watching MICRC meetings to keep abreast of commissioner activities.
- Voters Not Politicians has started organizing volunteers to provide public comment to the MICRC, using our close monitoring of the commission meetings to suggest relevant talking points for volunteers.
My City Votes (a project of Voters Ed Fund)
- The Flint Voter Access Town Hall hosted by My City Votes will be Tuesday, January 30th at 5:30pm and hosted in partnership with the North Flint Neighborhood Action Council. Speakers for this event will include Flint city clerk Davina Donahue and Patrick McNeal (Director of North Flint Neighborhood Action Council).
- As the largest city in Genesee county, Flint serves a wide voter community, and this town hall is another means for Voters Ed Fund to improve voter education and ensure equal access for residents to vote in 2024 and beyond.
- This civic engagement event will equip voters with the proper information to navigate the changes to ballot access and provide an opportunity to discuss voter turnout with various leaders in Flint.
- The Flint Voter Access Town Hall is free and open to the public. Attendees are encouraged to register for the event and share the event information widely with Flint residents.
Keep in Mind
- The MICRC has the ability and responsibility to fix the problems identified in Agee v Benson to improve the opportunity of historically marginalized communities to elect the candidates of their choice while maintaining or improving the maps against the other criteria, especially partisan fairness.
- The commission can, and should, consider maps submitted by the public that are accompanied by analysis and data, rather than starting from scratch while time is short.
- As the court stated, the commission should focus only on the districts the court has ordered redrawn and should avoid unnecessary disruptions to surrounding districts.
- VNP is confident that the commission can overcome recent challenges and come together to complete the redraw. Even with some bumps in the road, this redistricting process is vastly better than the previous system where political operatives drew maps to their own advantage behind closed doors.
- The 2024 Election Cycle has officially begun, and it’s important for pro-democracy movements like ours to make sure voters have the information and opportunity to make their voices heard. That is the work Voters Not Politicians and Voters Ed Fund will be focused on from now through November.
What’s Next
Voters Not Politicians is determined to make sure Detroiters’ voices are heard during this process. We are recruiting local volunteers from the affected districts to provide in-person public comment at each MICRC meeting. If you live in an affected district and would like to add your voice to this process, email VNP’s Director of Democracy Engagement at mariah@votersnotpoliticians.com.
We have also launched a digital campaign to reach voters in the affected districts on social media to let them know they have the right to make their voices heard during the remapping process. You can support this outreach work by donating to support the campaign here.
As always, Voters Not Politicians will continue to monitor the situation and keep everyone informed and engaged with this process. You can also subscribe for updates from the commission at michigan.gov/micrc.
Voters Ed Fund will also continue hosting Voter Access Town Halls in communities across the state. You can support the My City Votes voter outreach campaign by donating to Voters Ed Fund.
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