Advocates Speak Out Against State GOP Proposal to Change Redistricting Process

Wednesday, October 11th, 2023 -- 3:01 PM

(By Anya van Wagtendonk, Wisconsin Public Radio) Days after the Wisconsin Supreme Court voted to hear a challenge to the state’s Republican-drawn legislative maps, setting the stage for a possible restructuring of state political districts before the 2024 election, advocates on Monday spoke out against a GOP proposal to change the process for redistricting.

According to Anya van Wagtendonk with Wisconsin Public Radio, the press conference at the state Capitol comes amid a political fight over a lawsuit challenging Wisconsin’s current maps that the Wisconsin Supreme Court voted last week to take up.

On Friday, state Supreme Court Justice Janet Protasiewicz declined to recuse herself from hearing that case. Republican leaders called for her recusal because she had previously described those maps as "rigged," and said they would consider impeaching her if she did not.

In a 64-page order explaining her decision, Protasiewicz said that wielding recusal of a justice because they are "predicted to benefit a non-party to the case" would cause the courts to "grind to a halt." "Recusal decisions are controlled by the law," she wrote.

"They are not a matter of personal preference. If precedent requires it, I must recuse. But if precedent does not warrant recusal, my oath binds me to participate." At Monday’s event, advocates for different state maps argued the legislative process is rushed and disingenuous.

"The current redistricting bill … that Speaker Vos rushed through the Assembly is not the solution to the problem," said Carlene Bechen, the former grassroots director of the Wisconsin Fair Maps Coalition. "The backdoors and holes in the bills that allow legislators to control continued to control the process are buried in the details."

The advocates argued the GOP proposal was an attempt by Republicans to stave off a court challenge that could whittle away at the strong majorities they've held in both chambers of the Legislature for more than a decade.

Although Wisconsin’s electorate is fairly evenly divided between Republicans and Democrats, Republicans hold outsized majorities in the Legislature and few districts in the state are truly competitive.

Jay Heck, executive director of Common Cause Wisconsin, argued the redistricting proposal lacked transparency and safeguards against a majority party power grab. "Broad bipartisan support and consensus must be attained for any nonpartisan redistricting plan to work (so) that it can be assured that it will have the trust and confidence of Wisconsin voters," he said.

"Please pardon the voters of Wisconsin if they don't believe that, after 12 years of attacking, resisting and blocking any attempt or discussion of redistricting reform in the state Capitol, that Assembly Republicans have all of a sudden seen the light."

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