MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Wisconsin Democrats are inching closer to overturning Republican-drawn legislative maps that the GOP has used over the past 13 years to grow their majorities and advance their agenda.
At issue in battleground Wisconsin are the boundaries for state Assembly and Senate districts in a purple state where Republicans have held a firm grip on control of the Legislature even as Democrats have notched significant statewide wins.
Republicans drew the lines in 2011 and Democratic court challenges have since failed to overturn them, until now. Republican maps adopted in 2022 by the conservative-controlled Wisconsin Supreme Court used the 2011 map as a template and kept largely the same lines in place.
The Democrats’ latest lawsuit alleged the lines drawn by Republicans were unconstitutional because not all of the districts were contiguous, meaning some areas were disconnected from the rest of the district. The Wisconsin Supreme Court in December agreed and ordered new maps to be drawn in time for the November election.