The Wisconsin Senate meets on Jan. 23 to vote on Republicans’ proposal to institute new legislative maps. (Screenshot | WisEye)
In an attempt to bypass the Wisconsin Supreme Court, Republicans in the state Senate voted Tuesday to pass a bill that would install legislative maps aimed at protecting incumbent GOP lawmakers who were moved into new districts under maps proposed by Democratic Gov. Tony Evers.
The effort was announced Monday afternoon less than 24 hours before the session was scheduled. The Senate voted on a bill, which passed the Assembly in September without a public hearing, that Republicans claimed would create an “Iowa-style” redistricting commission to draw new legislative maps for the state every decade.
Democrats largely objected to the bill’s passage then due to complaints that it allowed for too much partisan influence on the process. A few Democrats voted for the proposal last year, saying at the time they hoped it would work to reduce the partisanship of map drawing in the state.