New Michigan House map approved ahead of election to decide which party controls chamber

A federal three-judge panel approved new voting districts for the Michigan House of Representatives on Wednesday after previously invalidating several districts that encompass Detroit — a majority-Black city — because the panel found the Michigan redistricting commission that created the maps drew the lines predominantly based on race in violation of the U.S. Constitution.

The panel approved the state House map redrawn by Michigan's redistricting commission in a court-ordered remedial mapping process that included a public hearing process to solicit feedback on the proposed districts. The metro Detroit voters who sued the redistricting commission opposed the map, arguing that the commission unfairly protects incumbent Democrats and should have included more majority-Black districts.

In its order, the panel overruled the plaintiffs' objections, arguing the substantial changes to the districts made by the commission in the revised map significantly diminish the electoral advantages incumbents typically enjoy.

The plaintiffs' argument that a map which purportedly protects incumbents and locks in the results of the 2022 election "assumes a degree of passivity among Detroit-area voters that finds little support in the record here," the court's opinion states. "To the contrary, the record shows an energized electorate that was profoundly unhappy with the racial gerrymander that we later invalidated in our December 2023 order." And in most of the districts that order struck down, "African-American voters will have markedly more power to elect their candidate of choice in 2024 than they did in 2022," the opinion adds.

The panel also overruled the plaintiffs’ objection that the commission needed to draw more majority-Black districts, finding they made "close to zero effort to show that the remedial plan actually violates the (Voting Rights Act)."

The redistricting commission's executive director, Edward Woods III, celebrated the panel's decision. "Despite doubts and concerns raised, the Commission demonstrated once again that it could focus on its purpose to draw fair maps with citizen input," Woods wrote in an email.

The panel's approval of a new state House map establishes the battle lines in Michigan's electoral landscape with several months to go until elections this fall to decide which party will control the chamber.

Map approval follows court-ordered redraw

Ahead of the last redistricting cycle — the process for redrawing new voting districts that occurs every 10 years — Michigan voters changed the state constitution to wrest control of the line-drawing process from politicians and put the pen in the hands of a group of randomly selected voters in the state charged with drawing fair maps.

A group of metro Detroit voters challenged the new lines drawn by the redistricting commission in a lawsuit filed in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Michigan ahead of the 2022 state House elections.

They alleged that the maps treated Black voters in Michigan's largest city unfairly, arguing that the commission drew the lines primarily based on race in violation of the 14th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution's Equal Protection Clause. They also asserted that the commission's maps did not comply with the federal Voting Rights Act, which requires drawing voting districts that provide protected racial minorities an opportunity to elect their preferred candidates.

The redistricting commission drew districts that paired neighborhoods in Detroit with suburban communities north of Eight Mile. As a result, the commission's state House map reduced the number of majority-Black districts compared with the GOP-drawn map previously in place. Black voters in Detroit spoke out against the commission's maps and called for changes prior to their approval.

The three-judge panel ruled last December that the commission illegally drew seven Detroit-area state House districts based on race. But it did not weigh in on whether the districts comply with federal voting rights law. The panel sent the commission back to the drawing board.

How does commission's state House map change current lines?

The commission's map approved by the panel reconfigures the seven districts struck down by the court along with eight others near the invalidated districts. No Democratic incumbents were drawn together into the same newly redrawn districts, staving off the possibility of a primary fight between lawmakers vying for reelection.

In Detroit, the new state House district increases the number of majority-Black districts that run through the city compared with the map currently in place.

Overall, the maps skew slightly more Republican compared with the districts currently in place, according to a pair of partisan fairness measures used by the commission to evaluate the maps.

Control of the state House at stake this election year

With every seat in the state House up for grabs, this year's elections will decide which political party will control the chamber for the next two years.

After the redistricting commission approved the lines currently in place, Democrats constituted a majority in the state House for the first time since 2010.

The upcoming primary election in August will offer a signal of how candidates preferred by Black voters in metro Detroit fare in Democratic primaries for the state House. Meanwhile, the November general election could test whether Democrats can hold control of the chamber.

The Democratic Party's campaign arm for state legislatures around the country characterized the new state House map as presenting a path for maintaining Democratic control. "Michigan will continue to be a shining example of the important work Democrats accomplish in state legislatures and holding the House is one of our top priorities for November," said Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee President Heather Williams in a statement.

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What happens next?

The state's Bureau of Elections will update the state voter file to reflect the new district lines. The three-judge panel will soon set a schedule for redrawing state Senate maps it also struck down. State Senate elections occur in 2026.

The redistricting commission is pursuing an appeal of the panel's decision striking down the first set of state House districts drawn by the commission as racially gerrymandered to the U.S. Supreme Court. Depending on how the court responds, the new state House map approved by the panel could remain in place for the remainder of the decade. Or, additional changes to the maps could come before the next round of redistricting.

Contact Clara Hendrickson at [email protected] or 313-296-5743. Follow her on X, previously called Twitter, @clarajanehen.

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This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Court approves new Michigan House districts