Wisconsin Supreme Court appoints judges to hear congressional redistricting cases

MADISON, Wis. (CBS 58) -- On Tuesday, Nov. 25, the Wisconsin Supreme Court decided two three-judge panels will review the state's congressional maps.

There are two separate cases: one alleges the maps are politically unfair, and the other says the maps are not competitive.

Wisconsin's congressional races were won by an average of 25 points last year, and one of the challenging attorneys says voters lose out when races are not competitive.

But the case is not likely to be finished in time for next year's November mid-term elections.

The legal team behind one of the challenges said they don't care which party wins these races, they just want more competitive results.

Doug Poland is the co-founder and attorney with Law Forward. He told us, "Our goal is to not have any safe seats."

Poland argues competition is good for voters.

He's leading a challenge to redraw Wisconsin's congressional maps. "Let's say we have truly competitive elections. What does that require? It requires, now, candidates to run on policy positions. And they've got to run on their record. And maybe they have to run on character."

The state Supreme Court picked three judges to serve on a panel that will now hear arguments in Dane County.

The argument Poland makes is if races aren't competitive, candidates don't need to be at their best to earn voters' support.

And most of Wisconsin's eight congressional districts have been anything but competitive.

In the 2024 election, seven of the state's eight races were won by double digits.

Republican Derrick Van Orden's three-point win was the closest race. The next closest was Republican Bryan Steil's 10-point win.

Democrat Gwen Moore won her Milwaukee district by 52 points. Democrat Mark Pocan won his Madison-anchored district by 40 points.

Poland said competitive maps would put the elections and the results back in the hands of the voters. "That's the point: we're not pushing for increased partisanship, in terms of the outcome."

Still, some conservatives are upset with the rulings, including some justices on the short side of the 4-3 ideological split.

Conservative justice Annette Ziegler called the opinion "legal fiction" and a "charade." She wrote, "Hand picking circuit court judges to perform political maneuvering is unimaginable."

The 2011 statute was passed by a Republican Legislature and signed by Republican Governor Scott Walker.

Conservative justice Brian Hagedorn agreed the panel must be appointed.

But, he argued, given the "call for geographic diversity and neutrality, a randomly-selected panel and venue would be a better way to fulfill the statutory mandate."

The next steps could take a while, with both sides calling witnesses and making their case.

And Poland expects appeals, so it's unlikely there will be a resolution or new maps by next fall. "That's ok," he said. "We just want to make sure the result is the right one."

There has been a lot of maneuvering in some state legislatures to manipulate maps to intentionally give one party an advantage and tip the balance of power in Congress.

Poland said because Wisconsin has a Democratic governor and a Republican-controlled Legislature, that's not possible here.

But he also said even if party power was consolidated, he feels there is no desire to manipulate Wisconsin's maps.