Nearly four years ago, over 9,000 Michiganders applied to the Michigan Independent Citizens Redistricting Commission (MICRC) to redraw voting maps for congressional and state legislative districts. 

Now, three applicants are being asked to join the commission following resignations from previous commissioners. It’s a critical time for the MICRC, as a panel of three federal judges last month called for 13 Detroit area House and Senate districts to be redrawn for violating the Voting Rights Act (VRA).

The new commissioners on Wednesday were randomly selected, just as all the commissioners have been, from a remaining pool of semi-finalists.

The commission was created after Michigan voters approved a change in the state’s laws in 2018 to pass the authority to draw voting district lines for the state House and Senate and congressional seats from the Legislature to an independent citizen commission.

The MICRC has four Republican commissioners, four Democrats commissioners and five independent commissioners and worked for over a year to finalize voting maps in 2021, which were then used for the 2022 election.

The maps drawn by the commission have seen opposition and legal action in the past. One lawsuit, filed in March 2022 by a group of Black metro Detroit voters, resulted in a panel of federal judges finding that the new maps diluted Black voting power in Detroit. 

Jamie Lyons Eddy, executive director of Voters Not Politicians, a group that championed the constitution amendment that created the MICRC, told the Advance on Tuesday that nothing in the judges’ decision calls into question the ability for the commission to complete the maps.  

“Voters Not Politicians strongly believes that the citizens commission Michigan voters put in place can (and must) redraw districts that adhere to federal standards, provide fair representation, and preserve statewide partisan fairness in a transparent process that takes into account public comment. This is exactly what voters demanded in 2018,” Eddy said.

Three commissioners resigned in recent weeks: Dustin Witjes, a Democrat; MC Rothhorn, a Democrat; and Douglas Clark, a Republican. 

If the new commissioners chosen Wednesday no longer wish to serve, there can be another random drawing. But the commission is currently on a tight deadline with the filing deadline for legislative candidates on April 23.

3 new members to be selected for Michigan redistricting commission after influx of resignations

There is no submitted comment listed for new Muldoon for why he would like to serve on the commission in the Commission’s publicly available documents. However, the new Democratic commissioners have comments listed.

Andrade said,“I believe strongly in our democracy, a democracy that truly represents the people. The Michigan Independent Citizens Redistricting Commission is our opportunity to get back to the constitutional ideals of democratic representation of the citizens of Michigan.”

Callaghan said, “Citizen participation is crucial for a healthy, well functioning democracy. I am excited about this historic opportunity to collaborate with other Michigan citizens to create fair, representative districts.”