by Scott McClallen
Julianne Pastula, the general counsel of record for Michigan’s Independent Citizen’s Redistricting Committee (MICRC) resigned Wednesday night amid lawsuits over proposed maps.
The Detroit Free Press first reported the story, which was overshadowed by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s 2022 State of the State address.
“The purpose of this letter is to provide official notice of my resignation as General Counsel,” Pastula wrote. “Pursuant to Section 2 of my Employment Contract 30-day written notice is required. This makes my resignation effective February 25, 2022.”
Pastula hasn’t responded to a call from The Center Square. Her annual taxpayer-paid salary is $150,000.
MICRC spokesman Edward Woods III said he was “surprised by the resignation and did not see it coming” he wrote in an email. “The Commission will discuss the next steps at its meeting today.”
The MICRC is meeting today virtually from 10 am to 2 p.m. So far, members fighting among each other has impeded progress. Pastula is attending the meeting.
The resignation followed hours after oral arguments from the lawsuit from Michigan’ Legislature Detroit Caucus that claims the maps dilute the power of majority-Black districts.
Republicans have filed a separate lawsuit challenging proposed Congressional maps Republicans claim that “The Commissioners’ failure to create districts with equal population also suggests that they did not prioritize the criteria enumerated in the Michigan Constitution in the order mandated by the Michigan Constitution,” the lawsuit said.
The redistricting commission drew maps prioritizing constitutional ranked criteria. The first criterion establishes “districts shall be of equal population.”
The MICRC will draw political maps set for the next ten years. Transparency was a goal when Michiganders voted in 2018 to create the MICRC. Fed up by in-power politicians picking their voters and drawing maps behind closed doors, a process commonly called gerrymandering, the MICRC claimed to be a solution to help residents transparently voice political maps for the next decade.
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Scott McClallen is a staff writer covering Michigan and Minnesota for The Center Square. A graduate of Hillsdale College, his work has appeared on Forbes.com and FEE.org. Previously, he worked as a financial analyst at Pepsi.
Photo “Julianne Pastula” by Julianne Pastula.
