Minnesota needs an independent citizen redistricting commission

The Reformer broke the news this week that Minnesota House Majority Leader Jamie Long, DFL-Minneapolis, has proposed a constitutional amendment that would create an independent citizens redistricting commission.

While Long’s goal in creating an independent redistricting commission is a good one, the bill includes other proposals, while what we need is a clean bill that prioritizes a citizen-driven approach. 

HF4593, by contrast, is that clean bill and has the support of a broad and diverse grassroots coalition. The differences in these bills are important.

You may be asking, why should we care about this constitutional amendment right now? Simply put: Who gets elected decides which policies are given priority at all levels of government and how much money is invested in our communities. They define opportunities and who has access to those opportunities — whether our roads are paved and maintained, whether we have reliable public transportation, whether our neighborhoods have strong public schools, and more. 

Until we pass a constitutional amendment creating an independent redistricting commission, the power will always reside with partisan interests of those drawing our district voting maps. It’s time for us to get the power back. Reforms should come from us, impacted Minnesotans, not legislative or party establishment.   

The Minnesota Legislature, which is theoretically tasked with drawing congressional and legislative district maps, has failed to do so for decades, instead relying on the judicial branch to draw the maps knowing the court takes a minimalist view of its role, using what is called a “least change” approach, which winds up failing many communities. 

Defaulting to forcing the court’s hand has left communities of color, Native Nations, and other historically disenfranchised Minnesotans behind for over six decades. Here is how the differences in Long’s bill (HF4598) and HF4593 matter in this work.    

• First, Long’s bill has a panel of retired judges select the commission. You don’t need to do much research to understand how monolithic the pool of retired Minnesota judges is when it comes to race, ethnicity and gender. If the panel selecting the commission members is not representative, we risk that the commission will not be either.  

• Second, there is no recourse to allow the commission to be advisory if the ballot measure fails. With Minnesota’s high standard for ballot initiatives, it is important that community input is there for redistricting no matter the outcome in November.
  

These differences are important to make sure Minnesota’s independent redistricting commission is truly representative of the people. A recent Common Cause report on redistricting fairness gave Minnesota a C+ grade. Our district voting maps literally lay the very foundation of our individual and collective political power, and we must get this right. 

A citizens independent redistricting commission is not a new concept. Common Cause Minnesota has worked with allies and affected communities since 2017 on this proposal. We first introduced it at the Legislature in 2019, after three years of community education and organizing. 

In 2021, Common Cause Minnesota led a historic litigation strategy that for the first time secured Native Nations, Minnesotans of color, and other disenfranchised communities a place at the table, making sure our stories and voices were centered in the state’s redistricting process. But having just a seat at the table is not enough. As we have seen, it still leads to districts that in effect favor those in power, instead of empowering our communities.  

A key component of the redistricting commission is that political insiders and politicians are prohibited from participation, eliminating the clear conflict of interest that exists when elected officials or those close to them draw districts. Another is that the rules that guide the process for drawing district voting maps center the interests of people — not political parties, partisan hacks, politicians or special interests.  

It’s time to finally take the power away from politicians and put it in the hands of the people. All our communities need an equal and equitable say so that our elected officials are responsive to our communities, not their party power apparatus.  

We need a clean constitutional amendment to create greater parity in how disenfranchised Minnesotans experience democracy, and we need to make sure this proposal finally delivers true representation for all Minnesotans.