A bipartisan coalition of business leaders operating as the “Wisconsin Business Leaders for Democracy” filed a lawsuit in the Dane County Circuit Court last Thursday that brands the state’s eight-seat congressional map a “textbook example of an anti-competitive gerrymander.” Represented by Law Forward, Stafford Rosenbaum, and Harvard’s Election Law Clinic, the plaintiffs argue the current lines, drawn in 2022 under a conservative “least-changes” directive and adopted by Democratic Gov. Tony Evers, suppress electoral competition in violation of several Wisconsin constitutional guarantees.
The case arrives only weeks after the Wisconsin Supreme Court (now under a liberal majority) refused to hear two earlier challenges that framed the map primarily as a partisan gerrymander, prompting advocates to reboot their effort in the trial courts instead of seeking immediate high-court review.
The suit highlights how the map’s 6-2 Republican tilt persists in a state where statewide elections are routinely decided by a point or two, a disparity plaintiffs call “artificially engineered” to protect incumbents. Democrats are focused on two GOP-held seats (the 1st and 3rd Districts) in particular, as they are remotely competitive under the current plan. By asserting an “anti-competitive” theory distinct from partisan-bias claims, the coalition hopes to give judges fresh legal footing and a longer procedural runway. While litigating first in the circuit court could stretch the timeline past the 2026 midterms, it also insulates the case from another swift dismissal at the state’s highest level. Either way, Wisconsin’s congressional lines and control of the U.S. House remain squarely in play. Read the article at WPR.org.
Additional Coverage: Wisconsin Examiner, ABC News.
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