(The Center Square) – Wisconsin’s governor is not guessing what comes next for the state’s political maps.
Gov. Tony Evers told reporters he wasn’t focused on what comes next when he vetoed the maps that were 99% of the maps he drew himself.
“All I know is that the maps I vetoed would not have been good for the people of Wisconsin,” the governor said.
Evers drew maps that drew more than two dozen sitting Republican lawmakers out of their districts. Republican lawmakers tweaked Evers’ maps and drew those lawmakers back into their districts.
Evers said those changes amounted to unacceptable gerrymandering.
Evers’ veto likely means the Wisconsin Supreme Court’s outside experts will decide who voters see on their ballots in November.
“How this plays out in the Supreme Court, I have no idea,” the governor said. “Though I hope it’s going to be my map, or something similar. It’s important to make sure that the people have good maps, that we have competitive races, all that stuff. I am hopeful, but, the Supreme Court. Here we go folks.”
Republican Assembly Speaker Robin Vos said while the governor may claim to not know what the new liberal-majority Wisconsin Supreme Court will do with the state’s legislative maps, his veto shows he has faith they will draw new maps that are friendly to Democrats.
“His [veto] only solidifies his trust in the Wisconsin Supreme Court to give him even more partisan, gerrymandered maps for Democrats – the very thing the court’s newest justice promised on the campaign trail while receiving record-level Democratic Party campaign donations,” Vos said in a statement. “By signing [the maps], he would have gotten 99.7% of the maps he’s proposed in court. This was never about fair maps.”
Wisconsin’s Supreme Court has said whatever maps are drawn, they must be finished by March 15, so they can be used in this year’s elections.
