Congressman Fred Upton is waiting on the results of court challenges to the newly drawn congressional and legislative districts in Michigan before making a decision on seeking re-election. He tells WSJM News the maps drawn by the Michigan Independent Redistricting Commission have some opposition.
“We’ll make a decision based on a number of factors,” Upton said. “It’s obviously a good question about am I going to run again or not, but we don’t have the answer today.”
The new map for what would be Upton’s new Fourth District would have him competing with Congressman Bill Huizenga. Upton notes the map splits Berrien County into two congressional districts for the first time ever.
“We’re split literally in half, with the southern part going to Lake Erie in a congressional district that will be 200 miles long and 30 miles wide. Communities of interest, like St. Joe and the lakeshore are split, our lakeshore being with Lake Erie as well as Lake Michigan and St. Joe and Benton Harbor being up with Holland and Kalamazoo and Battle Creek.”
Upton calls the commission’s maps “classic gerrymandering.” He says he doesn’t think that’s what the voters intended when they created the commission.
