David Eggert

Associated Press

LANSING — Republicans sued Tuesday to block the creation of Michigan's new, voter-approved redistricting commission, challenging eligibility guidelines that prohibit politicians and others from serving on the panel.

The lawsuit, filed in federal court, says the provisions violate potential applicants' rights to free speech and equal protection under the law.

The 2018 constitutional amendment requires that a commission of four self-identified Democrats, four self-identified Republicans and five unaffiliated members draw congressional and legislative lines instead of the Legislature, starting in 2021. It was a bid to curtail gerrymandering in a state where the GOP has had one of the largest partisan legislative advantages in the country after controlling the once-a-decade process in 2011.

Michigan is among five states where Republicans retained control of the state House even though Democratic candidates won more votes statewide last fall.

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Those excluded from serving on the panel include people who currently are or have in the previous six years been elected partisan officials or candidates, their paid consultants or employees, legislative workers, lobbyists and their employees, or political appointees not subject to civil service classification. Also barred are those individuals' parents, children and spouses.

"In excluding certain categories of citizens from eligibility based on their exercise of core First Amendment rights, including freedom of speech, right of association, and right to petition the government, the State has unconstitutionally conditioned eligibility for a value benefit on their willingness to limit their First Amendment right to petition government," says the suit, which was brought by 15 Republicans including state Sen. Tom Barrett and various party officials. They say there is no "compelling explanation" as to how limiting participation would result in a more impartial panel.

They want a judge to declare the law unconstitutional and prevent Democratic Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson from selecting commissioners, which are to be chosen randomly by September 2020 following a multi-step process.

"Voters spoke loud and clear last November that they want an independent, citizen-led commission — not partisan politicians — responsible for drawing district lines," she said in a statement. "My office will stay focused on engaging the public and encouraging full participation in a transparent application and random selection process for this commission, which has the opportunity to map Michigan's future."

Voters Not Politicians, the group that spearheaded the ballot measure, criticized the suit but called it no surprise that politicians want to hold onto their power.

"Michigan is one of the most gerrymandered states in the nation, but voters pushed back by overwhelmingly supporting the new redistricting amendment so voters choose their politicians — not the other way around," said Jamie Lyons-Eddy, the organization's director of campaigns and programs. "We're confident that the proposal will survive any and all legal challenges, just as it did from many of these same politicians on the way to the ballot."