Every 10 years, the Legislature must redraw the boundaries of Senate and Assembly districts to reflect shifts in population.

 

Every 10 years, the party in power draws the map to protect its incumbents.

 

This year, the Republicans are in charge, and they took full advantage to create new, strong Republican districts.  In the process, some Democratic seats became safer as well.  But one analysis found that 19 of the 33 Senate seats are strong Republican districts under the new maps.

 

Democrats looked out for their own self-interests when we had the opportunity.  It happened in 1983, when I was Senate majority leader.  But it has gotten worse.  In 1983, we did not place any incumbent legislators in a district with another incumbent.  Nor did we unnecessarily divide cities into more than one Senate district.  In fact, we reversed an earlier map in order to make the cities of Janesville, Beloit and Oshkosh whole again.

 

What this all means is that the politicians pick their voters rather than the other way around.  It’s time to change that.  That’s why I support giving responsibility for drawing the new maps to the Government Accountability Board and the Legislative Reference Bureau.

 

Assembly Bill 198, if passed, would require those agencies to develop standards for redistricting, one of which must be electoral competitiveness of the districts.  No more carving out super-Republican districts and super-Democratic districts.

 

What is especially egregious about the 2011 redistricting is that the majority party rushed to get the new boundaries enacted into law.  Normally the cities and counties draw their ward lines and supervisory district lines first.  Then the Legislature does its part. 

 

But this year the majority party wanted to get the lines drawn before this summer’s recall elections.  To do that, they had to change state law so the Legislature could draw its lines ahead of the municipalities and counties. 

 

Under the new maps, hundreds of thousands of Wisconsinites will find themselves in a new Assembly and/or Senate district.  Many of these districts are oddly shaped and clump together cities and portions of counties that have little geographical or community connection.  The far east side of Beloit, for example, is part of a new Senate District that stretches east and north to Mukwonago. 

 

The state constitution says districts should be as compact and contiguous as possible.  Instead of redrawing boundaries to reflect shifts in population and keeping communities of interest as compact as possible, every 10 years the exercise has been about gaining partisan advantage.

 

It’s time for change.  If we pass Assembly Bill 198 now, it will be in effect when the next redistricting occurs in 2021.  There are two good reasons to do this: 1) We don’t know which party will be in power in 2021.  It could be Republicans, it could be Democrats, it could be a third party.  2) Between 2001 and 2011, the turnover of legislators was nearly 70 percent.  Assuming this turnover rate continues, most of us legislators will not be here in 2021 anyway!

 

Those in power will not voluntarily give up power.  So let’s make this change now.