Detroit Free Press:

A Thursday meeting of Michigan’s redistricting commission saw accusations of bullying, yelling, a failed censure vote against the group’s chair and a public apology for the tense exchanges that came as the group stares down multiple lawsuits and faces the sudden resignation of its top lawyer. 

Only weeks ago, commissioners cheered and hugged one another after adopting new congressional and state legislative districts with few hiccups. The achievement prompted anti-gerrymandering advocates across the country to herald the commission’s work and tout the state’s commission as a model for how a randomly selected group of voters can draw fair voting districts. 

But the group’s Thursday meeting saw some of the harshest bickering among commissioners yet and revealed new vulnerabilities in the group’s dynamics as it faces pending litigation that threatens to force commissioners to return to the drawing board.