Wisconsin Legislature’s Passage of Gerrymandered Maps |
News |
Written by AOTL, Brooke Lillard |
Friday, 12 November 2021 11:16 |
Thursday's action bakes in the 2011 Republican Gerrymander, lacks transparency, dilutes the voices of populous urban areas and communities of color, says former Attorney General. Washington, D.C. -- Thursday, Eric H. Holder, Jr., the 82nd Attorney General of the United States and chairman of the National Democratic Redistricting Committee, released the following statement in response to the Wisconsin State Legislature’s passage of gerrymandered legislative and congressional maps: “The Republican gerrymandered maps and the process that led up to them are an insult to the people of Wisconsin. Instead of pursuing a fair and transparent process, the manipulated maps were—just as they were a decade ago—drawn in secret with Republicans holding just one hearing designed to prevent the public from participating in their process. Republicans even made it difficult for the public to submit proposed maps that recognized and protected communities of color, demanding additional onerous and unnecessary requirements for their submission. These actions are wrong and they are anti-democratic. Let me be clear: Republicans have this power that they are attempting to exploit solely as a result of a decade-long gerrymander that they put in place in 2011. I commend Governor Evers for pledging to veto these egregiously partisan maps and to fight for fair maps that accurately reflect the will and political preferences of Wisconsinites.” ALARMING THEMES IN WISCONSIN REPUBLICAN MAPS: Taken together, there are common themes among the Republican congressional and legislative maps in Wisconsin and the process that led up to them. Below are some of the alarming themes we have seen: 1. Bakes in the 2011 Republican Gerrymander: Following the 2011 Republican gerrymander, Wisconsin had some of the most gerrymandered congressional and legislative districts in the country. The maps passed by the Republican-led legislature manage to be even more gerrymandered than they were 10 years ago. Wisconsin is a 50-50 state, and a fair map should reflect its competitive nature. Over the past decade, Democrats have seen increasing success in statewide elections. For example, in 2018, Wisconsinites elected Tammy Baldwin to represent them in the United States Senate, Josh Kaul to be their Attorney General, and Tony Evers to be their Governor. In 2020, Wisconsin voted in favor of President Joe Biden. Yet the Republican legislature drew a congressional map that gives Republicans five safe seats and Democrats only two safe seats out of a total of eight. President Biden carries only 25 percent of the congressional seats the Republican legislature has drawn, despite his statewide win. 2. Lacks Transparency and Public Input: While Majority Leader Devin LeMahieu (R-Oostburg) has claimed that Wisconsinites had “an unprecedented level of input and influence over the map-drawing efforts,” the evidence shows that this statement is false. Throughout the duration of the redistricting process, the Republican legislators held only one public hearing, which took place after they released their gerrymandered maps. It’s clear the hearing was scheduled to prevent Wisconsinites from participating in the process, by scheduling one hearing in-person without a virtual option at 9 AM on a workday. *** Chaired by former Attorney General Eric H. Holder, Jr., the National Democratic Redistricting Committee (NDRC) is the first-ever strategic hub for redistricting focused on winning targeted elections, advancing legal action, and building up the political infrastructure to achieve a fairer redistricting process. |