GOP Redistricting Plan Would Bring Brandenburg Back to Shores

A familiar name could return to the Shores under the state Republicans' proposed redistricting plan released Friday.

The district for State Sen. Jack Brandenburg, R-Harrison Township, would be redrawn to extend further south and include all of St. Clair Shores, according to reports in The Detroit Free Press and The Detroit News.

Brandenburg represented St. Clair Shores and Harrison Township as a state representative from January 2003 to December 2008.

His proposed district would includes Chesterfield Township, Mount Clemens, Harrison Township, Shelby Township, Utica, Washington Township, Ray Township, Bruce Township and Lenox Township.

District lines for the State House of Representatives would also change. St. Clair Shores, which was in a district in Harrison Township represented by Anthony Forlini, R-Harrison Township, would share a representative with Eastpointe. 

Under the proposed redistricting map, U.S. Rep. Sander Levin, D-12, who currently represents St. Clair Shores, would be placed in the same district.

Levin and U.S. Rep. Gary Peters, D-MI, released a joint statement about the proposed redistricting.

“Voters in Michigan have never before faced such a shamelessly partisan redrawing of congressional boundaries. Instead of drawing fair lines that follow community and county borders in a logical way, the Republican legislature has drafted a map so skewed that it exploits every trick in the book to gerrymander districts in ways that benefit Republican incumbents. The legislature and Governor Snyder should reject this gerrymandered map and draw congressional boundaries in a way that puts Michigan voters’ interests squarely ahead of flagrant partisan advantage,” they said in the statement.

Any district changes must be approved by Nov. 1.