Republican Lawmakers React to Passing Evers' District Maps

Frederica Freyberg:
At the state Capitol this week, another curve ball in the fight over new voting maps. While awaiting a decision from the Wisconsin Supreme Court on which districts maps will be in effect for the upcoming elections, Republicans in the Legislature once again put forward maps drawn by Democratic Governor Tony Evers, only this time without any changes. Even more surprising was the majority of Democrats voting against the measure, skeptical of Republican intentions. Not all Republicans voted in line with their caucus, while others voted in favor with great resentment. Republican Senator Van Wanggaard said of the vote, “Republicans were not stuck between a rock and a hard place. It was a matter of choosing to be stabbed, shot, poisoned, or led to the guillotine. We chose to be stabbed,” he said, “so we could live to fight another day.”

Robin Vos:
Once we pass the maps, more or less the lawsuits stop. There’s no need for us to try to do an appeal to the Supreme Court because the Legislature has adopted a map. It’s been signed by the governor. There’s no need for us to be able to go through this process to say that Janet Protasiewicz is biased and we need a Caperton decision, right, because she won’t be deciding on the maps. So I think a lot of the things that we have for the potential to go to the Supreme Court and win on are no longer are viable, which is why, if the governor signs the map, I am supremely confident that that is the map that we will run on in November. Whether I like it or not, that’s what we’re going to deal with.

Devin LeMahieu:
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. Wisconsin voters deserve more certainty than Wisconsin Supreme Court is going to provide the Legislature. We’re going to step up. We’re going to end this sham litigation and pass the governor’s map. Nomination papers will be circulated in 62 days from today. The 2024 election is almost here. Passing these maps and having them signed by the governor will give the Wisconsin voters the certainty that they deserve.

Duey Stroebel:
And I don’t fear the election that I’m going to be faced with my delicately-sliced district now based upon the governor’s lawyers must have put together, but I’m going to vote for these maps because the process that’s underway in the Supreme Court certainly doesn’t appear that it’s going to take our arguments seriously or even consider them. So we kind of have a gun to our head, frankly, is really how it’s looking right now. And, I mean, I’m going to go out on a limb that says the governor, as he’s already indicated, he said that he does sign these maps because I really don’t think he wants to be so hypocritical or so partisan that he would veto his own exact maps that he has put forth.

Julian Bradley:
I don’t like this bill. I don’t like what we’re doing here today. I think it was already settled. I think we have a duty and a responsibility, and we did that. The dangerous precedent that’s being set is that a Supreme Court justice can run making promises of the outcome of a case and then rule on that case.