A Democratic law firm in Wisconsin is calling on the state Supreme Court to reconsider a new congressional map after a ruling last month that found the “lawless” current maps are unconstitutional.
Elias Law group, which focuses on elections, asked the high court to revisit the congressional lines, stating in the filing on Tuesday that the decision to toss out the legislative maps “rends the current congressional map lawless in the most literal sense.”
The group based its request on the court’s 2021 decision nullifying the “least change” principle, in which the fewest amendments possible would be made to the current maps, per Wisconsin Public Radio. The “least change” approach was used to draw the current congressional maps.
“Wisconsin’s current congressional map was drawn according to a ‘least change’ principle that perpetuated and exacerbated the partisan unfairness that has robbed Wisconsin voters of fair congressional districts for over a decade,” Elias Law Group partner Abha Khanna said in a statement to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
The motion filed by the law firm says the “lawless” map is set to remain in effect until around 2031 after the next census and subsequent redistricting process occur. Political districts are typically redrawn after the U.S. Census is conducted every 10 years to account for any changes in population — but the group is arguing that the state should not wait until then.
“Granting such relief will fulfill this Court’s constitutional duty to independently adjudicate the validity of Wisconsin’s congressional maps; failing to act will double down on a now-discredited legal principle and subject Wisconsin voters to a full decade under congressional maps that lack any basis in Wisconsin law,” the motion states.
Khanna said that the recent ruling from the Supreme Court means “Wisconsin’s congressional map now has no basis in Wisconsin law or precedent, and the remedial process to adopt a new, lawful map must resume immediately.”
The current maps, which favored Republicans, were ruled unconstitutional on Dec. 22, 2023, after the Supreme Court found they do not consist of contiguous territory. The ruling delivered a severe blow to the GOP, which is likely to face several other pushbacks now that the Supreme Court has a liberal majority for the first time in 15 years. In April, liberal Justice Janet Protasiewicz defeated conservative former state Supreme Court Justice Dan Kelly, flipping the majority blue.
The high court ordered seven new legislative maps be submitted, and consultants hired by the court will review them and release a report on Feb. 1. The Dec. 22 ruling calls for the state to establish new political boundaries by March 15, ahead of Wisconsin’s August primary election.
Wisconsin is expected to be one of several battleground states that could decide the 2024 presidential election. The state’s congressional delegation is currently split, with seven Republicans and three Democrats, with Gov. Tony Evers (D-WI) holding executive power. At the same time, Republicans control both chambers of the state legislature, making Wisconsin a purple state that either party can make gains in next November.
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Wisconsin has only two competitive congressional districts under the current maps: the 1st and 3rd Congressional Districts. The Supreme Court of the United States rejected the state legislative maps in March 2022 but declined to block the congressional lines.
Evers’s maps gave Republicans a slight advantage in the 3rd District, which Rep. Derrick Van Orden (R-WI) flipped red in the 2022 midterm elections. The 1st District became more competitive for Democrats, moving it from a 9-point GOP lead to a 2-point margin. However, Rep. Bryan Steil (R-WI) easily won reelection in the 1st District in 2022. National Democrats have set sights on those two seats as targets for the 2024 election.