Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson is inviting interested citizens to attend free public workshops across the state to promote awareness that online applications are now available to serve on the new Michigan Independent Citizens Redistricting Commission.
The Marquette workshop is 5:30 p.m. to 7 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 5 (doors open at 5 p.m.) at Northern Michigan University in the Northern Center, Founders Room, 1401 Presque Isle Ave. in Marquette.
The workshops will include an overview of the new redistricting process and an opportunity for participants to fill out an application, which takes about 15 minutes. Notaries will be available to complete the notarized signature requirement for each application at no cost. Participants should bring a photo ID to the workshops so notaries can verify their identity. All eligible Michigan voters are encouraged to apply to serve on the commission, which does not require any special skills or expertise. The randomly selected commission of citizens will each earn approximately $40,000 as compensation for their service.As you may recall, Michigan voters amended the state constitution in the November 2018 general election to make citizens — not legislators or special interests — responsible for drawing new district lines for the Michigan Senate, Michigan House of Representatives and U.S. Congress. The Marquette workshop is one in a statewide series of 10 events in 2019 designed to promote awareness about the opportunity to serve on the commission and provide step-by-step instructions about the application process.
More details are included in the attached press release. For more information on the Independent Citizens Redistricting Commission, please visit RedistrictingMichigan.org.
