U.S. Supreme Court to redistricting commission: Keep redrawing Detroit maps
- U.S. Supreme Court won’t pause redraw of metro Detroit state House districts while appeal of a lower court’s ruling is pending
- Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson had asked the court to hold off any redraws of state legislative maps until after the 2024 election
- Redistricting commission’s remapping process continues this week in Detroit
The U.S. Supreme Court isn’t stopping a lower court’s ruling requiring Michigan’s redistricting commission to redraw new Detroit-area political district maps by spring.
The court on Monday rejected separate requests by the Michigan Citizens Independent Redistricting Commission and Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson to pause the redrawing of new political districts while the commission appealed a Dec. 21 ruling that invalidated 13 House and Senate districts in metro Detroit.
The order, in its entirety, reads: “The application for stay presented to Justice (Brett) Kavanaugh and by him referred to the Court is denied.” The court has yet to rule on the appeal itself.
Related:
- Detroit area redistricting effort continues: Five things to know
- Benson: Redrawing Detroit districts by spring ‘threatens’ 2024 elections
- Can Michigan redistricting panel play nice, draw legal maps? It may get messy
Barring Supreme Court intervention, mapmakers are required to deliver new lines after a group of metro Detroiters successfully challenged the current maps on grounds that commissioners improperly used racial data to dilute the power of Black voters.
The federal panel denied a redistricting commission request to pause its ruling during the appeals process, citing time constraints in getting the House maps redrawn ahead of the November 2024 elections.
The U.S. Supreme Court’s decision on the stay means the commission must adhere to the lower court’s timeline, which requires mapmakers to deliver a draft of new House districts by Feb. 2 — in time for the 2024 elections.
On the House maps, the public comment period will end Feb. 23 and the commission’s final product is due in court by March 1. Following review by plaintiffs and court-appointed experts, the court will approve a new slate of metro Detroit House districts by March 29, and determine a path forward for affected Senate districts by April 12.
Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson had asked justices to hold off any redraws of state legislative districts until after the 2024 elections, arguing in a court filing that changing the map before this year’s August primary “threatens an orderly administration” of the election.
Attorneys for the Detroit voters challenging the commission’s work contested Benson’s opinion, asking Supreme Court justices to let the lower court’s order stand and allow the redrawing prior to 2024 elections to proceed.
Affected districts
A three-judge panel in December deemed the following state political districts unconstitutional and ordered them redrawn. Reconfiguring the districts could affect adjoining ones as well, causing other changes. Here are the ones at issue:
- House District 1, represented by Rep. Tyrone Carter, D-Detroit
- House District 7, represented by Rep. Helena Scott, D-Detroit
- House District 8, represented by Rep. Mike McFall, D-Hazel Park
- House District 10, represented by House Speaker Joe Tate, D-Detroit
- House District 11, represented by Rep. Veronica Paiz, D-Harper Woods
- House District 12, represented by Rep. Kimberly Edwards, D-Eastpointe
- House District 14, represented by Rep. Donavan McKinney, D-Detroit
- Senate District 1, represented by Sen. Erika Geiss, D-Taylor
- Senate District 3, represented by Sen. Stephanie Chang, D-Detroit
- Senate District 6, represented by Sen. Mary Cavanagh, D-Redford Township
- Senate District 8, represented by Sen. Mallory McMorrow, D-Royal Oak
- Senate District 10, represented by Sen. Paul Wojno, D-Warren
- Senate District 11, represented by Sen. Veronica Klinefelt, D-Eastpointe
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