Gov. Evers signs new legislative maps, says they give every party a ‘fair shake’

Gov. Tony Evers signing new legislative maps on Feb. 19, 2024. (Baylor Spears | Wisconsin Examiner)

Democratic Gov. Tony Evers signed new state voting maps Monday morning, which he had proposed and which were passed by the Wisconsin Legislature, creating new legislative districts in time for the 2024 election cycle before the Wisconsin Supreme Court was to choose new maps.

The legislative maps represent a break in Wisconsin Republicans’ grip on legislative power and give Democrats the chance to win additional seats — and majorities in the Legislature — for the first time in over a decade.

“It’s a new day in Wisconsin,” Evers said at a press conference in the state Capitol to the cheers of surrounding advocates.

“To me, the decision to enact these maps boils down to this: I made a promise to the people of Wisconsin that I would always try to do the right thing and keeping that promise to me matters most, even if members of my own party disagree with me,” Evers said.

The state Supreme Court declared Wisconsin’s legislative maps unconstitutional in December. The maps, which heavily favored Republicans, were widely seen as among the most gerrymandered in the country The new maps signed by Evers were proposed as one of several options for justices to consider. In their decision, the state Supreme Court urged the state Legislature and Evers to pass maps, while at the same time setting up a process using experts hired by the Court to help the justices choose new maps if the Legislature and the governor could not agree.

Lawmakers passed Evers’ maps unchanged last week, after Evers’ vetoed their first attempt to implement a version of the maps that Democrats said protected Republican incumbents. The maps passed in a mostly party line vote last week.

“I wanted fair maps, not maps that are better for one party or the other, including my own,” Evers said. “Wisconsin is not a red state and it is not a blue state. Wisconsin is a purple state and I believe our maps should reflect that basic fact. I believe that the people should get to choose their elected officials, not the other way around.”

Republicans said that they would rather have the maps picked through the legislative process , rather than by the state Supreme Court. Some lawmakers also expressed fears that the Court would choose maps that were worse for Republicans.

Assembly Speaker Robin Vos (R-Rochester) said in a statement that Evers signed the “most Republican-leaning maps out of all the Democrat-gerrymandered maps being considered by the Wisconsin Supreme Court.

“We sent him those maps, not because they are fair, but because the people of Wisconsin deserve certainty in state government. This legislation brings to end this sham of a litigation designed to deliver judicially gerrymandered Democrat maps to the liberal special interest groups funding said litigation,” Vos said.

Vos said that Republicans would prove in the fall that they can win under any maps because they have “better policy ideas for the State of Wisconsin.”

Evers signed the maps despite concerns by Democrats that Republicans’ decision to pass the maps could be a trick involving a planned challenge by conservatives in federal court. Only two Democrats — Rep. Sylvia Ortiz-Velez (D-Milwaukee) and Sen. Bob Wirch (D-Somers) — voted for the maps alongside Republicans.

Following passage of the maps, Senate Majority Leader Devin LeMahieu said that Republicans had no ulterior motives in passing the maps.

“I don’t know what mischievous thing we’re doing here. It’s sort of rich or funny some of the comments made by Democrats on the floor,” LeMahieu said on UPFRONT over the weekend.

Rick Esenberg from the Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty, which has frequently brought court challenges on behalf of Wisconsin Republicans, also told WKOW over the weekend that he doesn’t “have any plans to file a lawsuit in federal court to strike anything down.”

Senate Minority Leader Dianne Hesselbein (D-Middleton) called the maps “a huge win for the people of Wisconsin” in a statement, though she said that she was still disappointed with the legislative process that brought the maps forward.

“For more than a decade, issues that Wisconsinites cared deeply about were largely ignored because Republicans had rigged the redistricting process,” Hesselbein said. “This November, Republicans will finally face a constituency that reflects the will of the people and one that will hold them accountable for more than a decade of unchecked power.”

Sen. Mark Spreitzer (D-Beloit) told reporters after the signing that he trusted Evers to consider the potential and to make a decision on the maps.

“That’s exactly what he did today and now we’ve moved forward with fair maps, and as Gov. Evers said, this is just step one. We have to fight for a fair process,” Spreitzer said. “We know that there will be more map drawing after the 2030 census, and we’ve got to win majorities that are prepared to put in place a process ahead of that that will produce fair maps well into the future.”

Democrats had also expressed concerns about whether Republicans were trying to delay the implementation of the maps until the fall due to some language included in the text of the bill, though WisPolitics reported that the language was added by the state Legislative Reference Bureau.

Evers said that he would be asking the state Supreme Court to clarify that the maps will be in place for any special elections and recalls ahead of November elections.

There is a vacancy in the state Senate left by former Sen. Lena Taylor (D-Milwaukee), who resigned so she could serve as judge for the Milwaukee County Circuit Court .

Legislative Black Caucus chair Rep. Dora Drake (D-Milwaukee) said in a statement late Monday that the maps were a “step in the right direction” in fighting the Republican gerrymander, but that the caucus has “concerns if this map violates the Voting Rights Act.”

“We will be seeking additional experts and input to confirm if this map upholds the Voting Rights Act and move accordingly. All of our communities deserve maps that are fair and deserve maps where all communities can choose their candidate of choice,” Drake said.

Parties in the lawsuit celebrated Evers’ action, saying it represented a big win for Wisconsin.

“For thirteen years, Wisconsinites suffered under unfair and unconstitutional maps – but today, that changes,” Mark Gaber, senior director of redistricting at Campaign Legal Center, said in a statement. “The adopted maps represent a massive win for democracy, respect communities, and give a voice to Wisconsinites who have been silenced for far too long by gerrymandered maps deliberately designed to drown them out. These maps give all Wisconsinites – no matter where they live in the state or which party they support – a fair shot to make their voice heard in 2024.”

Update: This story has been updated to include comment from the Wisconsin Legislative Black Caucus Chair Rep. Dora Drake.

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