More than 6,200 Michiganders applied to help redraw Michigan’s political districts, using 2020 U.S. Census data, ahead of the 2022 elections.
State officials have processed 6,262 completed and notarized applications for the Independent Citizens Redistricting Commission, and anticipated more coming in before the 5 p.m. deadline Monday, June 1.
Following the nine-month application window, a third-party firm will select 200 semi-finalists at random before the commission members are selected in August.
“Our goal during this first phase of the process was to ensure every Michigander knew about this opportunity to be a part of our state’s history and had the information and resources they needed to apply,” said Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson in a prepared statement. “The sheer volume of applications we’ve received tells us we were incredibly successful in achieving that goal.”
The redistricting commission was approved by voters in 2018. Proposal 2 aimed to thwart gerrymandering by taking the redistricting process out of the hands of legislators. The responsibility would instead be given to a 13-member commission made up of four people affiliated with the Democratic party, four people affiliated with the Republican party and five not affiliated with either party.
Among the first 6,000 applications received, state officials said applicants were from 82 of the state’s counties, and most applicants were not affiliated with a political party.
Eighty-five percent of applicants were white, 61 percent were male, and 43 percent were 65 or older. According to July 1, 2019 estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau, Michigan’s population is 79% white, 50.8% female and 17% over the age of 65.
Random selection of semi-finalists will be done by the independent accounting firm Rehmann LLC. The semi-finalists will be posted online and delivered to legislative leaders by the end of June. Legislators will be allowed to strike up to 20 applications per the Michigan Constitution.
As part of the application process, 250,000 applications were randomly mailed out on Dec. 30, 2019, according to the Secretary of State’s Office. Two periods of public comment were also held, as well as 59 in-person events across the state and 11 virtual town halls in the last month of the application period.
The 2018 “Voters Not Politicians” ballot proposal passed with 61.27 percent of votes (2.5 million) in favor of the proposal. For more information, visit the state’s frequently asked questions page for the initiative.
Read more on MLive:
Gov. Whitmer to lift stay-at-home order, allow in-person dining at Michigan restaurants
Michigan reports lowest 24-hour coronavirus case increase in months
‘Things feel so dark,’ Gov. Gretchen Whitmer says on riots, coronavirus and Midland flooding
What’s allowed to reopen in Michigan and what isn’t?
Why is Michigan’s coronavirus death rate so high?