A second three-judge panel of circuit court judges empaneled by the Wisconsin Supreme Court has dismissed a challenge to the state’s congressional map brought by liberal groups.
For the second time in a month, a three-judge panel of circuit court judges has dismissed a challenge to Wisconsin’s congressional map brought by liberal groups. The two panels, established by the Wisconsin Supreme Court to determine whether the map was gerrymandered, have now concluded that they cannot overturn a prior Supreme Court ruling on the matter.
“As circuit court judges, we conclude that the Panel possesses no authority to supersede decisions of the Wisconsin Supreme Court,” the judges concluded in Tuesday’s order. “This panel is not endorsing the current congressional map. Rather, we as circuit court judges do not have the authority to read into a Wisconsin Supreme Court case an analysis that it does not contain.”
The Wisconsin Supreme Court in 2022 adopted the current map, which was drawn by Gov. Tony Evers’ “People’s Maps Commission,” and rejected one drawn by the Republican-controlled Wisconsin Legislature. The Wisconsin Constitution provides that the Supreme Court is the court of last resort in the state and, by definition, a lower court judge cannot overturn a Supreme Court ruling.
In March, a separate panel of judges made the same determination, holding that “as circuit court judges, we conclude that the Panel possesses no authority to supersede decisions of the Wisconsin Supreme Court.”
The dismissals effectively end the challenge to Wisconsin’s congressional map and ensure that the state will not be redistricted ahead of November’s midterm election. Republicans hold a 6-2 advantage in Wisconsin’s congressional delegation.
