New legislative district maps drawn by Governor Tony Evers and approved just days ago by the Wisconsin Supreme Court have come under fire on several fronts.
The most egregious charge is of violating the Voting Rights Act by "grouping" African-Americans voters in Milwaukee. More on that in a separate post.
The most vindictive charge is the blatant partisan gerrymandering by Governor Evers purposely bumping State Senator Dale Kooyenga (R-Brookfield) out of the district he currently represents.
A few legislators being "paired" into the same district is not entirely uncommon when redistricting occurs.
However, what makes the Sen. Kooyenga pairing so egregious is that he was bumped into another district by "just 9 homes" according to a LinkedIn post by the Senator.
In his March 6th LinkedIn post Sen. Kooyenga stated in part:
In what someone just called "quite possibly the most personal, creative, partisan and cynical gerrymander in Wisconsin history," Governor Evers, with the assistance of the Wisconsin Supreme Court, has removed me from the State Senate.
Sen. Kooyenga states later in the post:
Step 2: is they drew our family's home into another Senate district. See the attached photo, our home is just 9 homes, 1 block, into the 8th Senate District. This is where it gets beyond cynical, even by partisan political standards. The 8th Senate District is an even district, which means there is no election there until 2024 because it's a four-year term. Poof! Dale is gone.
With each State Senate District including approximately 177,000 constituents "just 9 homes" is well within the margin of error. Had Governor Evers and his map drawers wanted to keep the duly elected Sen. Kooyenga in his current district they very well could have. No significant effort required. Instead they purposely "paired" Kooyenga into the same district as long-standing Republican incumbent State Senator Alberta Darling.
Being "paired" or "pairing" is a redistricting tactic that redraws maps so that two incumbents are forced to run against each other. You can pair two members of the same party into one district, likely forcing the two incumbents to face off in a primary (such as in the Kooyenga-Darling example as both are Republicans). Another option is to pair an incumbent from one party into a district where they would be highly likely to lose in the general election. Both efforts result in the loss of a seat for the party not redrawing the maps. It should also be noted, that pairing is hard to do by accident. It would be hard for someone in Sen. Kooyenga's position to convince themselves they just lost a simple coin toss. It would be more like losing 50 coin tosses in a row (just guessing, not sure of actual coin toss count).
Furthermore, the 8th Senate District that Sen. Kooyenga was moved into is a meandering mess (see map above). The 5th Senate District currently in effect is as close to a clean square as you will ever see in district maps (see below, right from Wisconsin Blue Book 2021-2022). The 8th District bobs and weaves like a drunken partisan sailor by comparison.
It is highly likely that these maps will be redrawn or replaced by an alternative pending ongoing lawsuits (currently before the U.S. Supreme Court). There is a chance that the new maps will go into effect as drawn without changes.
Sen. Kooyenga has the option to move back into the 5th Senate District to run for re-election or run for the 8th Senate District Seat in 2024. He could also choose to run in the State Assembly instead of the Senate. Or keep his fingers crossed that after losing 50 coin tosses in a row he might win the next 50 tosses and a minor edit to the current maps might redraw him back into his home district.
OR... heaven forbid... he could choose not to run for office at all!
It is cheap partisan gamesmanship to elbow an incumbent out of his or her current district instead of beating him or her fair and square in November. Such is modern politics.
Two potential golden parachutes for Sen. Kooyenga's political career include an appointment in the administration of a Republican Governor after the 2022 election and/or a 2024 Sen. Darling retirement. Both are theoretically possible.
As a CPA and MBA with government experience, Sen. Kooyenga certainly has the brains to contribute in several capacities in a Republican administration. That is, IF candidates Rebecca Kleefisch, Kevin Nicholson, or another Republican challenger can oust incumbent Democratic Governor Tony Evers. Governor Evers is up for re-election in a year that historical trends suggest should favor Republicans in November as the party of the President tends to perform poorly in midterms with few exceptions.
Similarly, if Sen. Kooyenga is indeed pushed into the 8th Senate District currently held by incumbent Sen. Darling there is a chance that Sen. Darling will retire instead of seeking re-election in 2024. Sen. Darling is nearly 78 years old and will be 80 when up for re-election in 2024. Even if Sen. Darling decided to seek re-election in 2024, at 80 years old with over 30 years in elected office, there would be ample pressure in a Republican Primary for a new face. Republicans are the party that oppose career politicians after all.
Of course, this could all be completely moot if further redistricting occurs.
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