The lines for Wisconsin’s new electoral districts should go beyond the “least change” approach endorsed last year by the Wisconsin Supreme Court, according to Annemarie McClellan, a member of the People’s Map Commission (PMC).
She spoke at a Friday noon rally outside the Eau Claire County courthouse aimed at showing public support for fair rather than partisan election district lines. McClellan is co-president of League of Women Voters (LWV) of the Greater Chippewa Valley, which sponsored the local rally – one of 16 scheduled to be held statewide at noon on Friday.
Close to 50 people attended the Eau Claire rally in 10-degree weather. Other speakers were state Sen. Jeff Smith (D-Eau Claire) and Tim Lienow, a member of the Dunn County Board.
McClellan said there is no constitutional requirement for a “least change” map and none of the experts or the nearly 2,000 citizens who met with the PMC asked for a map with the fewest changes. The “least change” approach was advocated by state Republican legislators and was endorsed by the state Supreme Court on Nov. 30 by a 4-3 vote that followed party lines.
McClellan called this “gerry laundering” – taking a gerrymandered map and setting up criteria for change that make it easier to preserve the advantage held by one party.
PMC background
The nine-member PMC, created by Democratic Gov. Tony Evers, spent a year holding public hearings and working with experts to develop election district maps that reflect no partisan bias. It heard from some 1,800 Wisconsin residents and said in its final report that there was overwhelming support for the maps to be drawn by a nonpartisan entity.
The PMC developed its own set of maps for the new voting districts and submitted them for consideration by the state Supreme Court. Its final report is available at http://PMC_Report_Final_Full-compressed (2).pdf (wi.gov).
Lienow said his main issue is government responsiveness and said gerrymandered voting districts take away the incentive for elected officials to carry out the will of the majority of voters. He said a majority of WIsconsin counties – 56 of 72 – have passed resolutions or referenda supporting fair maps but the Legislature has not responded to that call.
Smith said that where election district boundaries are drawn can make a major difference in the party makeup of the state legislature.
As an example, he noted that the state Senate is controlled by Republicans by a 21-12 margin. Under a more equitable election district map, their margin would be 17-16, he said.
The rally set-up included a table where attendees could get hot coffee and hand warmers, if they needed to warm up during the 30-minute event.
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NOTE: this story is based on notes taken at Friday’s rally by Patty Scott, a CVPost board member and edited by David Gordon, associate editor. Photos accompanying the story were taken by Scott.