HER CONFIRMATION.
AT THIS MOMENT, WISCONSIN HAS NO
MAPS SHOWING LEGISLATIVE VOTING
BOUNDARIES.
BECAUSE THE U.S. SUPREME COURT
THIS WEEK REJECTED WISCONSIN'S
NEW ELECTION MAPS PUT FORTH BY
DEMOCRATIC GOVERNOR TONY EVERS.
REPUBLICANS ARGUED EVERS' MAPS
VIOLATE THE VOTING RIGHTS ACT BY
IMPROPERLY USING RACE IN SETTING
SEVEN MAJORITY BLACK DISTRICTS
IN THE MILWAUKEE AREA, COMPARED
TO THE FORMER FIVE DISTRICTS.
THE NATION'S HIGHEST COURT SAID
WISCONSIN'S SUPREME COURT SHOULD
HAVE LOOKED AT WHETHER A
RACE-NEUTRAL ALTERNATIVE THAT
DID NOT ADD A SEVENTH
MAJORITY-BLACK DISTRICT WOULD
DENY BLACK VOTERS EQUAL
POLITICAL OPPORTUNITY.
SENIOR POLITICAL REPORTER ZAC
SCHULTZ JOINS US TO EXPLAIN THE
RULING.
HI, ZAC.
>> HELLO, FREDERICA.
>> SO BY YOUR READ, DID THE
RULING FROM THE U.S. SUPREME
COURT COME AS A SURPRISE HERE?
>> I THINK IT DID DO A LOT OF
OBSERVERS, SIMPLY BECAUSE THE
COURT HAS BEEN CONSISTENT IN
THESE REDISTRICTING DECISIONS
OVER THE PAST COUPLE YEARS THAT
WENT THIS CLOSE TO AN ELECTION,
THEY PREFER TO DEFER TO THE
STATE COURTS IN THESE CASES.
THEY'VE DONE THAT IN NORTH
CAROLINA, IN PENNSYLVANIA, AND
IN ALABAMA ON ANOTHER VOTING
RIGHTS ACT-TYPE DECISION.
SO IN THIS CASE, A LOT OF PEOPLE
WERE THINKING IT'S TOO CLOSE,
ESPECIALLY WITH THE CANDIDATES
ABOUT TO START CIRCULATING
NOMINATION PAPERS IN THE NEXT
MONTH, SO THAT WAS THE SURPRISE.
>> SO THE HIGH COURT SENDS IT
BACK TO WISCONSIN JUSTICES,
TELLING BASICA THEM BASICALLY TE
IT OUT.
HOW INCLINED ARE WISCONSIN'S
JUSTICES TO GET INTO THE
BUSINESS OF DRAWING THESE MAPS?
>> WELL, I THINK THEY WANTED TO
AVOID DRAWING THE MAPS FROM THE
BEGINNING.
THAT'S WHY THEY WENT THE ROUTE
THEY WENT, WHICH IS CHOOSING
FROM A REPUBLICAN MAP OR
GOVERNOR EVERS' MAPS.
IN THIS CASE, REMEDYING THE
SITUATION THAT THE U.S. SUPREME
COURT SAYS NEEDS TO BE FIXED
INCLUDING ADJUSTING THESE
BOUNDARIES GIVES THEM A COUPLE
OF CASES.
GOVERNOR EVERS WOULD SAY LET'S
FIGHT JUSTIFY THE MAPS YOU
ALREADY EXIST OR YOU CHOSE OR
THEY COULD SLIGHTLY ADJUST HIS
MAPS.
REPUBLICANS, OF COURSE, ARE
SAYING, HEY, USE OUR MAP, IT
DOESN'T VIOLATE THE VOTING
RIGHTS ACT AND IT'S CLOSE ENOUGH
TO WHAT SOME OF THE OTHER
MEASURES THE WISCONSIN SUPREME
COURT WANTED IN THE FIRST PLACE.
SO THEY MAY ADJUST BOUNDARIES OR
THEY MAY PICK BETWEEN ONE OR
TWO.
>> SO JUSTICE HAGEDORN WAS THE
SWING VOTE IN WISCONSIN THAT
APPROVED THE EVERS MAPS.
WILL ALL EYES BE ON HIM THIS
ROUND?
>> ABSOLUTELY.
HE'S BEEN THE SWING VOTE ON ALL
OF THESE REALLY IMPORTANT
DECISIONS ALL ALONG.
THERE'S THREE LIBERALS, THERE'S
THREE CONSERVATIVES, AND JUSTICE
HAGEDORN IS CLEARLY A
CONSERVATIVE IN MINDSET BUT HE
HAS APPROACHED THINGS
DIFFERENTLY AND INDEPENDENTLY IN
A LOT OF THESE CASES, AND HE WAS
THE ONE THAT SET THE STANDARD
FOR THE LEAST CHANGE MODEL THAT
THE COURT DECIDED TO ADAPT IN
PICKING THE MAPS AND HE'S THE
ONE WHO SIDED WITH LIBERALS WHEN
THEY DECIDED TO PICK THE EVERS
MAPS SAYING DID THAT FIT IN THE
FIRST PLACE.
SO HE IS WHO EVERYONE IS GOING
TO BE APPEALING TO.
>> SO TONY EVERS IS ALREADY
WANTING TO SUBMIT TO THE STATE
SUPREME COURT NEW EVIDENCE IN
SUPPORT OF HIS MAPS AND EVEN
CHANGES TO HIS MAPS.
WHAT'S HAPPENING THERE?
>> WELL, HE'S LOOKING AT TWO
DIFFERENT OPTIONS FOR HOW TO
KEEP HIS WHOLE MAP IN PLACE.
EITHER BY MAKING MINOR
ADJUSTMENTS IN THE MILWAUKEE
AREA AND HOPING THAT SATISFIES
THE WISCONSIN SUPREME COURT AND
THE U.S. SUPREME COURT, OR HE'D
LIKE TO KEEP HIS ORIGINAL MAP
AND MAKE A FURTHER JUSTIFICATION
TO THE U.S. SUPREME COURT OF WHY
HIS DISTRICTS ACTUALLY ARE LEGAL
UNDER THE VOTING RIGHTS ACT.
THE CRUX OF THAT ARGUMENT THERE
IS THAT HE SAYS HE DIDN'T GET TO
MAKE THE FULL CASE IN THE FIRST
PLACE, AND THE U.S. SUPREME
COURT WANTED EVIDENCE THAT IT
NEVER RECEIVED IN MAKING THE
DECISION TO SAY THAT THERE WAS
NO JUSTIFICATION FOR CREATING
THAT SEVENTH BLACK-MAJORITY
DISTRICT IN MILWAUKEE.
>> SO HOW MUCH IS TIME OF THE
ESSENCE HERE?
IS IT CRITICAL?
>> ABSOLUTELY, BECAUSE WE'RE
ONLY A FEW WEEKS AWAY FROM
CANDIDATES BEING ABLE TO TAKE
OUT NOMINATION PAPERS IN THESE
ASSEMBLY AND STATE SENATE
DISTRICTS AROUND THE STATE, AND
THEY NEED TO KNOW THE
BOUNDARIES, BECAUSE THEY CAN
ONLY COLLECT SIGNATURES FROM
ELIGIBLE VOTERS WITHIN THEIR
DISTRICT.
AND THIS GETS BACK TO THE
QUESTION OF WHICH MAPS MIGHT BE
CHOSEN.
BECAUSE IF THEY END UP JUST
MODIFYING THE EVERS MAP OR
JUSTIFYING IT, THEN THE VAST
MAJORITY OF THE STATE'S DRIJT
DRICT LISTATE'S DISTRICTLINES HE
BEEN WORKING ON BOUNDARIES OF
WHICH WARD IS IN WHICH DISTRICT
SO PEOPLE KNOW WHERE TO GO.
BUT IF THE WISCONSIN SUPREME
COURT CHANGES COURSE DIRECTLY
AND SAYS WE'RE GOING TO USE THE
REPUBLICAN MAP, WELL, THAT MEANS
EVERY DISTRICT IN THE STATE
CHANGES, EVERY CLERK IN THE
STATE HAS TO START REDRAWING
THOSE BOUNDARIES, AND ALL THOSE
CANDIDATES MAY BE CIRCULATING
PAPERS WITHOUT KNOWING WHERE
THEY ACTUALLY WILL BE RUNNING.
>> SO WHAT DO YOU THINK CLERKS
ARE THINKING RIGHT ABOUT NOW?
>> WELL, CLERKS HAVE BEEN
DEALING WITH A LOT THE LAST TWO
YEARS.
THEY'VE DEALT WITH ELECTIONS
DURING A PANDEMIC, THEY'VE HAD
THE COURTS AND LEGISLATURE
CHANGE THINGS AT THE LAST MINUTE
IN ALL THESE ELECTIONS AND NOW
THEY'VE BEEN DEALING WITH ALL
THESE CONSPIRACY THEORISTS
ACCUSING THEM OF FRAUD.
SO THEY'RE USED TO BEING IN THE
HOT SEAT IN WISCONSIN ELECTIONS
BUT THIS IS JUST ONE MORE THING
THEY HAVE TO DEAL WITH.
ULTIMATELY IT'S UP TO EACH
CANDIDATE TO CIRCULATE
NOMINATION PAPERS IN THE CORRECT
DISTRICTS BUT THEY'RE RELYING ON
CLERKS TO HAVE THOSE DISTRICTS
SETS.
THEY'VE BEEN WORKING OVERTIME
SINCE THE ORIGINAL EVERS MAPS
HAVE BEEN CHOSEN A FEW WEEKS AGO
AND THEY HAVE AN EVEN SHORTER
DEADLINE TO FINALIZE THESE.
>> MEANWHILE SCOTUS LEFT IN
PLACE THE EVERS CONGRESSIONAL
MAPS MAKING THE FIRST DISTRICT
MORE COMPETITIVE.
REPUBLICANS WANT TO CHALLENGE
THAT.
DOES THAT CHALLENGE HAVE LEGS?
>> WELL, WHO KNOWS?
IT'S THE WISCONSIN SUPREME
COURT.
THEY ORIGINALLY SAID THOSE MAPS
WERE FINE AND THE APPEAL WAS
DENIED BY THE U.S. SUPREME
COURT, SO YOU WOULDN'T THINK THE
WISCONSIN SUPREME COURT WOULD
REVISIT THAT DECISION, BUT ONCE
IT'S BACK IN THEIR COURT, THEY
CAN MAKE ANY DECISION THEY WANT
AND JUSTIFY IT REALLY ANY WHICH
WAY THEY WANT.
>> ZAC SCHULTZ, THANKS VERY
MUCH.
THANKS FOR UNTANGLING THIS FOR
US.