IPPSR-affiliated Professor Jon Eguia has released his breakdown of the most recent maps being considered by Michigan's Independent Redistricting Commission. In the summary of the report, Eguia stated:
"I analyze ten “Draft Proposed maps” that the MICRC has submitted for public comment. This analysis is meant to complement the work of consultants working for the Commission, by providing quantitative evidence to help the Commission and the public interpret how the maps comply with the Equal Protection clause, with the Court Order in Agee v Benson, with the Voting Rights Act, and with some of the seven redistricting criteria in the Michigan Constitution that have received less attention in the Commission’s work thus far.
I show evidence that at most ten (not eleven) compact geographic areas can simultaneously satisfy the first Gingles condition in reasonably configured maps that are drawn not on the basis of race. This provides an argument to defend that maps with ten at least districts of opportunity comply with the Voting Rights Act. All of the Draft Proposed maps create at least eleven districts of opportunity for Black voters.
Five of the Draft Proposed maps, in addition to creating at least eleven districts of opportunity, are, according to our evidence, indistinguishable from maps drawn not on the basis of race: Bergamot, Bergamot 2, Waterlily, Motown, and Willow.
All ten Draft Proposed maps outperform the 2022 MI House map across criteria."
A full copy of the report can be found here.