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Comparative Constitutional Law Keyed to Sutton, 5th Ed.
Citizens Protecting Michigan’s Constitution v. Secretary of State
Citation:
921 N.W.2d 247 (Mich. 2018)Facts
Voters Not Politicians launched a petition drive proposing a constitutional amendment to reestablish a commission to oversee legislative redistricting. The 1963 Michigan Constitution had created such a commission, but it was declared non-severable from unconstitutional apportionment standards based on weighted land area and population formulas that violated federal Equal Protection requirements. Since 1982, the Michigan Supreme Court had overseen redistricting until the Legislature assumed control in 1996. The VNP proposal would create a 13-member independent citizens redistricting commission with four members from each major political party and five independent members, selected through a random process from applicants. The commission would establish redistricting plans based on seven criteria prioritizing equal population, geographic contiguity, communities of interest, partisan fairness, and other factors. Sufficient signatures were gathered to place the proposal on the November 2018 ballot. Before certification, CPMC filed suit arguing the proposal constituted a general revision requiring a constitutional convention rather than a permissible amendment. The Court of Appeals rejected this argument and ordered the proposal placed on the ballot.
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