Mapping Michigan's Congressional Districts: How It Works

(CBS DETROIT) – Michigan will have one less representative advocating in the halls of the Capitol on behalf of the state.

"It's never a good thing for a state to lose a voice in Congress. I mean it's appropriate that if population density is spreading unevenly across the country, those states that are gaining population should in fact have more seats," said University of Michigan Political Science Professor Vincent Hutchings.

Hutchings says the responsibility of carving out Michigan's new 13 districts will be in the hands of a special committee.

"A ballot initiative was passed a few years back where this was taken out of the hands of the state legislature and put in the hands of this independent commission composed of experts and ordinary citizens," said Hutchings.

The Independent Citizens Redistricting Commission has exclusive authority to adopt district boundaries for the Michigan Senate, Michigan House of Representatives, and U.S. Congress every 10 years.

"Oftentimes, partisan actors in the state legislature draw seats congressional seats in such a way so that it benefits their party. That had been true in this state for some time. Even though we have a democratic governor and two Democratic senators, the state was most recently won by a democratic president, the state legislature has been dominated by Republicans for some time. That's in part because of the way the seats are drawn," he said.

Michigan's congressional representation has been on the decline since the 1970s when it peaked at 19 members.

The state is also set to lose a vote in the electoral college.

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