; public notice and input (a) Development of redistricting plan (1) Criteria In developing a redistricting plan of a State, the independent redistricting commission of a State shall establish single-member congressional districts using the following criteria as set forth in the following order of priority: (A) Districts shall comply with the United States Constitution, including the requirement that they equalize total population. (B) Districts shall comply with the Voting Rights Act of 1965 ( 52 U.S.C. 10301 et seq.) and all applicable Federal laws. (C) Districts shall provide racial, ethnic, and language minorities with an equal opportunity to participate in the political process and to elect candidates of choice and shall not dilute or diminish their ability to elect candidates of choice whether alone or in coalition with others. (D) Districts shall respect communities of interest, neighborhoods, and political subdivisions to the extent practicable and after compliance with the requirements of subparagraphs (A) through (C). A community of interest is defined as an area with recognized similarities of interests, including ethnic, racial, economic, social, cultural, geographic or historic identities. The term communities of interest may, in certain circumstances, include political subdivisions such as counties, municipalities, or school districts, but shall not include common relationships with political parties or political candidates. (2) No favoring or disfavoring of political parties Except as may be required to meet the criteria described in paragraph (1), the redistricting plan developed by the independent redistricting commission shall not, when considered on a statewide basis, unduly favor or disfavor any political party. (3) 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 the criteria described in subparagraphs (A)