Gov. Evers Signs New Legislative Maps Into Law

Date Mon, Feb. 26, 2024 - 9:14am By Hamilton

On February 19, Gov. Evers (D) signed into law his own redistricting proposal (now 2023 Wisconsin Act 94) after the Republican-controlled Wisconsin Legislature adopted it. See the governor’s press release and prepared remarks on the bill signing and several news articles. Late last year, the liberal majority on the Wisconsin Supreme Court held that the previous state legislative maps were unconstitutional.

Under the governor’s maps, more than 40 incumbent legislators, mostly Republicans, are paired with one another, meaning they now find themselves residing within the same legislative district. Some incumbents will move because of the redrawn district lines, some will square off in primary elections, and some will not seek reelection. Previously, Gov. Evers vetoed a bill including maps that were nearly identical to his proposal, but with minor adjustments made to unpair some legislators.

Under Gov. Evers’ maps, Senate Republicans appear likely to maintain a majority after the 2024 elections, though their margin is certain to shrink (currently, it is 22-10, with one vacancy in a strongly Democratic district). Assembly Republicans will also see their lead reduced (currently, it is 64-35) and control of the Assembly could be in play if Democrats have a good election cycle. See a comparison of the old and new maps here.

In adopting Gov. Evers’ maps, Republican legislators calculated that the governor’s proposal was the “least worst” of the options likely to be adopted by the Wisconsin Supreme Court. Senate Majority Leader LeMahieu (R-Oostburg) stated to the media: “Given the circumstance the Legislature is faced with two choices: either pass the governor’s maps as is or allow the liberal majority of the Wisconsin Supreme Court to gerrymander the state at the very last minute without public input.” Although a few minor issues remain, the redistricting lawsuit appears to have been effectively ended by the adoption of the governor’s maps.

Since our last updates in January (see coverage here and here), Gov. Evers also signed several other bills into law:

Act 92 ratifies the collective bargaining agreement negotiated between the University of Wisconsin-Madison and the Wisconsin State Building Trades Negotiating Committee for the 2023-24 fiscal year. (press release)
Act 93 ratifies the collective bargaining agreement negotiated between the University of Wisconsin System and the Wisconsin State Building Trades Negotiating Committee for the 2023-24 fiscal year.
Act 95 “requires the Board of Regents of the University of Wisconsin System to establish a guaranteed admission program for applicants who rank in the top of their high school class and requires an annual class ranking of some high school pupils at the end of 11th grade.” (press release)
Act 96 provides $7.5 million in funding for a grant to BioForward, Inc. in order to leverage federal funding under Wisconsin’s designation by the federal government as a regional technology and innovation hub for biohealth and personalized medicine. (press release)

For more information about the 2023-24 legislative session in Wisconsin, see the following articles:

Categories Elections & Politics / Governor / Wisconsin Legislature / Wisconsin Supreme Court