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In recent years, Wisconsin has had one of the most heavily gerrymandered district maps in the country, which has carried real consequences for state policymaking. As the Associated Press reported, that’s about to change.
Wisconsin’s GOP-controlled Legislature on Feb. 13 passed legislative maps that were proposed by Democratic Gov. Tony Evers — a move designed to prevent the liberal-controlled state Supreme Court from implementing maps that might be even worse for Republicans. Republicans conceded defeat, while Democrats said they were afraid of being tricked.
“It pains me to say it, but Gov. Evers gets a huge win today,” Republican Assembly Speaker Robin Vos said, adding that under the newly redrawn maps, partisan control of the state legislature “will be up for grabs.”
I think he meant that as a complaint, though he shouldn’t have.
In case anyone needs a refresher as to how we arrived at this point, let’s revisit our earlier coverage for a quick review.
Shortly before Christmas, the Wisconsin Supreme Court rejected the state’s existing map, which was an important breakthrough for democracy advocates. After all, it’s difficult to overstate just how important gerrymandering has been to Wisconsin Republicans in recent years.
In 2016, for example, GOP state senators received 49% of the vote, but ended up with 56% of the power. In 2018, Republican state House candidates received 45% of the vote, but ended up with 64% of the power. In 2020, GOP state senators received 49% of the vote, but ended up with 63% of the power.
Given this, when describing Wisconsin’s political system, “democracy” was not the first word that comes to mind. Since the 2010 election cycle, Republican officials in the state have created a model in which it’s effectively impossible for voters to elect a Democratic majority to the state legislature. Even when Democratic candidates received the most votes, it was the GOP that ended up with legislative majorities in Madison.
In response to the state Supreme Court’s ruling, Wisconsin’s Democratic governor, Tony Evers unveiled a proposed map he considered fair. To hear GOP legislators tell it, they were left with a choice: Go along with Evers’ map, or take their chances with a map drawn by state Supreme Court justices.
They apparently preferred the former.
All of which brings us back to Assembly Speaker Vos, and the Republican’s acknowledgement that the state legislature “will be up for grabs.”
Isn’t that how it should be? In one of the nation’s most competitive battlegrounds, doesn’t it make sense that partisan control of the legislature would be decided by voters casting ballots, as opposed to a status quo in which the outcome is determined by lawmakers in advance?
As a Washington Post analysis noted, in reference to Vos’ quote, “This is a telling comment. There was no question that the legislature was not up for grabs previously. ... But that’s not really something that legislators would usually trumpet.”
This post updates our related earlier coverage.