Alternatives abound as Evers appoints a new group to draft nonpartisan maps
By Melanie Conklin
Former state Sen. Dan Kapanke, who is running as a Republican in western Wisconsin to retake the seat he lost to former Sen. Jennifer Shilling, laid out a surprising challenge to Democrats this week.
He admitted during the talk radio show La Crosse Talk PM on station WIZM that the current maps are gerrymandered and he challenged Democrats to draw up better ones.
“What I have said about this, and I’m going to agree with you to a certain extent, if you look at some of the districts,” Kapanke said. “The Democrats right now are the minority, and they’re complaining about these districts and, some of them, they have some merit, some of their complaints. There’s no question. So, I ask them, I challenge them, bring forth the maps that they would draw up.
It is more difficult to select which among the dozens of maps that have been proposed during the last round of redistricting and subsequent court battles; the challenge for Democrats might be choosing which one to give to Kapanke first.