A group with ties to the Michigan Chamber of Commerce is challenging a 2018 ballot initiative that aims to end political gerrymandering by empowering an independent commission to draw the state’s congressional and legislative districts. Citizens Protecting Michigan’s Constitution filed a challenge Thursday with the state elections board, announcing that it had also sued in the state appeals court a day before. It contends ballot committee Voters Not Politicians is seeking to amend so many parts of the state constitution that a constitutional convention is required, and that the proposal does not list all of the sections of the constitution that would be abrogated.
The conservative Citizens Protecting Michigan’s Constitution — which helped to defeat five ballot measures in 2012 — received $85,000 in in-kind legal services in March from the Michigan Chamber Litigation Center. The Michigan Chamber of Commerce, whose political action committee gave $100,000 in February, came out in opposition to the redistricting proposal and two other ballot initiatives last fall.
The state elections bureau recently released a sample pulled from 425,000 signatures submitted by the redistricting group . The deadline to challenge signatures was Thursday.
Full Article: Group challenges Michigan anti-gerrymandering ballot initiative.