| Congressional Boundaries | Drawn by independent citizens redistricting commission |
| State Boundaries | Drawn by independent citizens redistricting commission |
| Governor's Party | Democratic |
| Legislative Party | Republican |
Scored Maps from the Redistricting Report Card
Related content
Communities of Interest
Check out Communities of Interest collected in this state on Representable
Learn about Communities of Interest in this state
Census-related Redistricting Timeline Delays
Congressional
Alert: Severe| Final Map Deadline | 2021-11-01 |
| Deadline Type | Constitutional |
| Other Dates |
|
| News Sources | Michigan's high court won't weigh in on redistricting delay Redistricting commission to ask High Court to push map deadline to Jan. 25 Michigan wanted to end gerrymandering. Census delays make it ‘really messy’ |
| Additional Notes | Commission asked High Court for extension to 1/25/2022, but Court refrained from weighing in. |
| Actions Proposed in State | Court extension, Keep old maps for 2022 |
State Legislative
Alert: Severe| Final Map Deadline | 2021-11-01 |
| Deadline Type | Constitutional |
| Other Dates |
|
| News Sources | Michigan's high court won't weigh in on redistricting delay Redistricting commission to ask High Court to push map deadline to Jan. 25 Michigan wanted to end gerrymandering. Census delays make it ‘really messy’ |
| Additional Notes | Commission asked High Court for extension to 1/25/2022, but Court refrained from weighing in. |
| Actions Proposed in State | Court extension, Keep old maps for 2022 |
Process
Independent Redistricting Commission
Beginning in the 2020 redistricting cycle, Michigan's state legislative and congressional districts will be drawn by a 13-member Independent Citizens Redistricting Commission.
- The membership must include four members of each major party and five who are not affiliated with either. 60 applicants from each major party and 80 unaffiliated with either were selected through a statistically-weighted random drawing to ensure demographic and geographic diversity. Half of each pool must also consist of applicants who received a randomly mailed paper application. The four legislative leaders can then strike up to five applicants each for a total of 20. From this final list, 13 are randomly selected. Click here to learn more about the selection process.
- Learn more about the 2021 commissioners on the ICRC website.
Criteria
The 2018 redistricting reform amendment sponsored by Voters Not Politicians establishes a set of strict, ranked criteria that the Commission must follow when drawing the maps. The Commission must explain in a report how the maps it adopts meet the criteria in the amendment.
In ranked order, the maps must follow all federal requirements, including the Voting Rights Act (VRA); be contiguous; respect communities of interest; not favor any party or incumbent; follow county, city, township lines; and be compact.
Public Input
The Michigan commission has released its 2020 redistricting website, where the public can find relevant information and contacts.
The Commission must hold at least 10 public hearings across the state before it begins drawing maps and at least another five public hearings across the state to present its draft maps before it adopts them. Before voting to adopt a plan, the commission must provide public notice of each plan that will be voted on and provide at least 45 days for public comment on the proposed plan or plans. Throughout the process, the commission must accept written public comment and public map submissions.
2011 Cycle
The 2011 redistricting process in Michigan led to some legal controversy. In April 2012, a federal court rejected a lawsuit brought by labor and civil rights advocacy groups challenging the state House plans. In October 2019, the Supreme Court sent back a federal lawsuit originating in Michigan (League of Women Voters v. Benson) to the district court to be dismissed in light of the Court's ruling in Rucho v. Common Cause that federal courts have no jurisdiction to hear partisan gerrymandering claims.
Issues
Commission Legal Challenge
In Daunt v. Benson (which was consolidated with Michigan Republican Party v. Benson), plaintiffs challenged the Independent Redistricting Citizens Commission's eligibility criteria and overall make-up. On July 6, 2020, the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals granted the defendants’ motions to dismiss the case, upholding the lower court that affirmed the constitutionality of the Commission.
Congressional Seats
Following the 2020 Census apportionment results, Michigan lost one congressional seat.
Actions
Participate in the Commission’s public input process.
- Obtain Michigan redistricting data from OpenPrecincts.
- Start to plan out what defines your community – whether it’s a shared economic interest, school districts, or other social or other cultural, historical, or economic interests – and how that can be represented on a map. This will come in handy once the commission starts collecting feedback.
- Use software tools such as Dave's Redistricting App and Districtr to draw district maps showing either (a) what a fair map would look like, or (b) where the community you believe should be better represented is located.