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ICRC Virtual Public Hearings

Teresa Basey | Published on 2/4/2021

Will your vote count during the next 10 years? Now is the time to make your voice heard! We need Fair Maps when Indiana lawmakers redistrict after the census data is returned this summer.

Indiana Leagues have been laying groundwork for Fair Maps over the last decade, since the current maps were approved by the legislature in 2011. All IN for Democracy (All-IN), the coalition built in 2015 from our earlier IN Coalition for Independent Redistricting, worked with the legislature to pass bills consistent with recommendations from the 2015 legislative Interim Study Committee—calling for an independent citizens commission to draw maps using expanded criteria and a transparent process. Despite the committee recommendations and bi-partisan support, redistricting legislation has failed to pass the General Assembly.

All-IN is redoubling efforts in the next few months to provide opportunities for citizens’ voices to be heard. The coalition has created a citizens’ commission (ICRC) to draw district maps and model how this process could be done to the benefit of all voters in Indiana.

The nine-member Indiana Citizens Redistricting Commission (ICRC) has been selected from nearly 300 applicants. From the many outstanding applicants, about 35 were interviewed for three Republican, three Democrat, and three Neither-R-nor-D positions as well as for alternates, and technical and legal support teams. The nine commission members are listed below.

Republican members:

Clara Glaspie of Indianapolis is a longtime Republican activist who was the first Black woman to participate in the Richard G. Lugar Excellence for Women Leadership series.

Leigh Morris of LaPorte is the former Mayor of LaPorte and retired as the CEO of the community hospital there.

Marilyn Moran-Townsend of Ft. Wayne is the CEO of CVC Communication and a co-founder of AVOW, Advancing Voices of Women, a group to support and empower women as civic leaders.

Democrat members:

Missie Summers-Kempf of Portage is active in a number of groups organized around racial justice and environmental issues in Northwest Indiana.

Xavier Ramirez of Carmel is a student at Indiana University who works with the Civic Leader Learning Center as a student advisory board member.

Ranjan Rohatgi of South Bend is Assistant Professor of Mathematics and Computer Science at Saint Mary’s College where he developed a class called “Mathematics of Voting.”

Neither Republican nor Democrat members:

Christopher Brandon Harris of Hammond is a project manager for a commercial construction general contractor and participates in the Mitch Daniels Leadership Foundation.

Sonia Leerkamp of Ninevah is the former Hamilton County Prosecuting Attorney who serves on the board of the Brown County League of Women Voters.

Charles Taylor of Muncie is a Professor of Political Science at Ball State University who has moderated numerous political forums and is committed to civic education.

The ICRC plans to hold virtual public hearings around the state to engage Hoosiers in discussions about redistricting criteria and to identify important communities of interest that should be kept together when drawing district boundaries. ALL-IN will also sponsor a map drawing contest and encourage citizens to draw and submit their maps using criteria identified during the public hearings. Winning maps and the Commission's report of criteria citizens consider important for drawing fair maps will be delivered to the legislature (and made public) before the legislature meets to draw their maps this summer.

The list of hearing dates and times are presented for each of the nine U.S. Congressional districts below. Muncie is in the 6^th congressional district.

February 24: Wednesday, 7:00-9:00 pm EST, 6:00-8:00 pm CST, U.S. Congressional District 7

March 3: Wednesday, 7:00-9:00 pm EST, 6:00-8:00 pm CST, U.S. Congressional District 5

March 6: Saturday, 3:00-5:00 pm EST, 2:00-4:00 pm CST, U.S. Congressional District 1

March 10: Wednesday, 7:00-9:00 pm EST, 6:00-8:00 pm CST, U.S. Congressional District 9

March 13: Saturday, 3:00-5:00 pm EST, 2:00-4:00 pm CST, U.S. Congressional District 3

March 16: Tuesday, 7:00-9:00 pm EST, 6:00-8:00 pm CST, U.S. Congressional District 6

March 18: Thursday, 7:00-9:00 pm EST 6:00-8:00 pm, CST, U.S. Congressional District 8

March 23: Tuesday, 7:00-9:00 pm EST, 6:00-8:00 pm CST, U.S. Congressional District 4

March 30: Tuesday, 7:00-9:00 pm EST, 6:00-8:00 pm, CST, U.S. Congressional District 2

Register for the public hearings in advance at www.lwvin.org

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