; public notice and input (a) Development of redistricting plan (1) Criteria The independent redistricting commission of a State shall develop a redistricting plan for the State in accordance with the following criteria, prioritized according to the following order: (A) Districts shall each have equal population per representative as nearly as practicable, in accordance with the Constitution of the United States. (B) To the extent not inconsistent with the above criteria, districts shall comply with the Voting Rights Act of 1965 ( 52 U.S.C. 10301 et seq.). (C) To the extent not inconsistent with the above criteria, districts shall be geographically contiguous. (D) To the extent practicable and not inconsistent with the above criteria, district boundaries shall minimize the division of any community of interest, municipality, county, or neighborhood. For purposes of this subparagraph, a community of interest is a contiguous population which shares common social or economic interests that should be included within a single district for purposes of its effective and fair representation. Examples of such shared interests are those common to an urban area, a rural area, an industrial area, or an agricultural area, and those common to areas in which the people share similar living standards, use the same transportation facilities, have similar work opportunities, or have access to the same media of communication relevant to the election process. Communities of interest shall not include relationships with political parties, incumbent officeholders, or political candidates. (E) To the extent practicable and not inconsistent with the above criteria, districts shall be geographically compact such that nearby areas of population are not bypassed for more distant areas of population. (2) Factors prohibited from consideration In developing the redistricting plan for the State, the independent redistricting commission may not take into consideration any of the following factors, except to the extent necessary to comply with