No. of Recommendations: 9
Non-partisan boards is a chimera.
This is how the Michigan board is staffed, (from the net sifter)
Michigan's Independent Citizens Redistricting Commission (MICRC) has 13 members—four Republicans, four Democrats, and five Independents—who draw state legislative and congressional maps, including members like Erin Wagner (R), Marcus Muldoon (R), Elane Andrade (D), Donna Callaghan (D), and Independents like Janice Vallette, Rebecca Szetela, and Anthony Eid, with Ed Woods III serving as Executive Director, tasked with creating fair districts outside of direct political control.
Current Commissioners (Partial List as of early 2024/late 2023):
Republicans: Erin Wagner, Marcus Muldoon, Cynthia Orton, Ronda Lange.
Democrats: Elane Andrade, Donna Callaghan, Juanita Curry, Brittni Kellom.
Independents: Janice Vallette, Rebecca Szetela, Steven Terry Lett, Anthony Eid.
Executive Director: Edward Woods, III.
How They're Chosen:
Created by a 2018 ballot initiative (Proposal 1), the commission is made of citizens chosen randomly from applicants, not elected officials or political insiders.
There are strict eligibility rules to ensure independence, preventing candidates, party officials, lobbyists, or state employees from serving
The proof, as they say, is in the pudding. The Michigan House currently has 58 GOP and 52 Dem members. The Michigan Senate has 19 Dem and 18 GOP members. Gov, AG and SecState are all Dems.
For comparison, the Michgian House in 2016 had 63 GOP members and only 47 Dems. The state Senate had 27 GOP and 12 Dem members.
The independent commission in Michigan seems to have created a map that more accurately reflects the purple nature of the state.
Steve
