(The Center Square) – No one knows what is going to happen with Wisconsin’s congressional map, but experts say the state’s local political maps are almost certainly going to change after the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling on racial gerrymandering.
The conservative-majority court on Wednesday ruled Louisiana’s political map, which included a second majority-minority congressional district, was unconstitutional.
The ruling means no state will be able to use race as the primary factor in any of its political districts.
Dan Lennington, managing vice president with the Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty, said that means all political districts.
“Any electoral district anywhere in America drawn with race in mind (or to ‘comply with Voting Rights Act’, is likely unconstitutional,” Lennington told The Center Square. “In Wisconsin, most notably, this would include most of the Milwaukee aldermanic districts, which were expressly drawn based on race and the record is voluminous proving that.”
Lennington also said the ruling could mean changes for school board districts in Milwaukee and across the rest of the state.
“The decision effectively closes the door to the Voting Rights Act disparate-impact type litigation and opens the door to the 14th Amendment ‘no race’ plaintiffs.” Lennington added on X. “This should apply to cities, counties, school districts, legislative districts, etc., created to ‘preserve’ minority representation or to be ‘equitable.’ I’m sure examples abound. Milwaukee is one definitely.”
Wisconsin’s congressional map is in flux. There are at least two lawsuits that look to redraw the map and give Democrats two more seats. WILL is involved.
Earlier this week a second three-judge panel dismissed one of those lawsuits. But it remains to be seen if the liberal-majority Wisconsin Supreme Court will take the case directly.
