The public has a chance to weigh-in this week when an independent commission takes comments on proposed changes in Michigan’s Congressional and state legislative districts.
Michigan’s Republican-led state legislature gerrymandered the districts about a decade ago to the point where some resemble bad jigsaw puzzle pieces.
The independent re-districting commission is supposed to re-draw those lines in a way that is non-partisan and provides equal representation for so-called “communities of interest.”
The commission recently unveiled four potential new Congressional district maps and three each proposing new state house and senate boundaries.
But critics raised concerns over the changes, even before the official public comment hearings that begin this week.
The new maps could eliminate majority Black legislative districts, which some say would violate the Voting Rights Act. That law requires protecting the rights of minorities in the electorate.