Posted on 07/08/2015 11:28:46 AM PDT by afraidfortherepublic
A group of Democrats sued state election officials Wednesday over election maps Republicans drew in 2011 that helped give them a firm grip on the Legislature.
The lawsuit comes two years after a panel of three federal judges in separate litigation redrew two Assembly districts and blasted GOP lawmakers for drawing the maps in secret. That panel found the two districts on Milwaukee's south side violated the voting rights of Latinos, but it upheld all the other legislative maps, allowing Republicans to keep their advantage in elections.
The new lawsuit seeks to change that by arguing the maps are so partisan as to be unconstitutional.
"This kind of partisan gerrymandering...is unconstitutional because it treats voters unequally, diluting their voting power based on their political beliefs, in violation of the Fourteenth Amendment's guarantee of equal protection, and because it unreasonably burdens their First Amendment rights of association and free speech," Milwaukee attorney Peter Earle wrote in the lawsuit, brought with backing of a group called Fair Elections Project Wisconsin.
"Extreme partisan gerrymandering is also contrary to core democratic values because it enables a political party to win more legislative districts — and thus more legislative power — than is warranted by that party's popular support."
Those bringing the lawsuit say they will file litigation in other states, including against maps that benefit Democrats. They didn't give a time frame for doing so in a meeting with editors and reporters with the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
A dozen Democrats brought the case in federal court in Madison against members of the state Government Accountability Board, which runs elections. As with the last lawsuit, it will likely be heard by a three-judge panel.
The GAB, which was not involved in drawing the maps in the last round of redistricting, had no comment...
(Excerpt) Read more at jsonline.com ...
Democrat watchword: If you can’t win an election at the ballot box, then take them to court.
FReep Mail me if you want on, or off, this Wisconsin interest ping list.
SCOTUS opened the floodgates for this sort of thing in their ruling on the Arizona case.
Petulant little children, the whole lot of them.
“Only us democrats can do that~! how dare they do what we do”
Wait wait wait wait... SO they want Gerrymandering to be illegal???
um... OK
What’s good for the goose...................
As an active member of the Arizona Repubican Party I will tell you that we were in shock. Everyone, including the Democrats assumed the SCOTUS would do their jobs because it is so clearly unconstitutional. A Congresswoman even gave up her seat and declared she was going to run for Senator because she thought she would be redistricted out of her seat. However, based on the decisions that came out before the redistricting, it took away some of the shock. Once you have a Supreme Court that doesn’t use the Constitution, all you have left are political lawyers. And that’s where we are.
SCOTUS has now handed the Democrats the very tools they need to smash the last bulwark against total Lib domination...the ability of Republicans to gerrymander a Congressional majority.
Between the redistricting case and the “disparate impact” housing case (minority Democrat voters coming to a safe GOP district near you) the process of CHANGE will be complete within a decade or so.
Aren’t these claims more than 4 years old, and hence barred by a statute of limitations?
I should think they’d be barred by common sense and human decency. But, the Dems don’t seem to know anything about that. They’ve already been thrown out of court once.
And, then when the Dimo’s are in power they move the lines around to suit their purposes so they can stay in power.
The number of people flocking into Wisconsin from Illinois during virtually every election is staggering. State issued voter I.D., like we have in Indiana, are the only viable solution.....Think of the worthless debris that flowed into Wisconsin from wherever during the Walker recall election....PATHETIC.
FYI the Dems are planning another recall effort against Scott Walker after he announces on Monday.
Are you serious?
I am dead serious. There will be another recall effort. Will they actually get enough signatures... Probably not.
We can hope and pray that they are shot down right out of the box.
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