Midwest
Wisconsin consultants hired to redraw GOP-drawn legislative maps following court ruling
- Two consultants were hired to analyze new legislative boundary lines in Wisconsin after the state’s Supreme Court invalidated the existing Republican-drawn maps.
- Wisconsin, among over a dozen states, is facing challenges to redistricting maps following the 2020 U.S. census.
- The Wisconsin Supreme Court ruled last month that the current legislative maps are unconstitutional, requiring the Legislature to pass new maps.
Two consultants hired to analyze new legislative boundary lines in Wisconsin after the state’s Supreme Court tossed the current Republican-drawn maps will be paid up to $100,000 each in taxpayer money under terms of their contracts made public Thursday.
Each consultant will be paid an hourly rate of $450, up to $100,000 total, but the state director of courts has the authority to exceed the maximum amount if she determines it is necessary, according to the contracts.
Wisconsin is one of more than a dozen states currently wrestling with challenges to redistricting maps that were redrawn following the release of the 2020 U.S. census and first applied to the 2022 elections. Court challenges could result in new U.S. House and state legislative maps before the November election.
WISCONSIN SUPREME COURT TOSSES GOP-DRAWN LEGISLATIVE MAPS, ORDERS NEW VOTING BOUNDARIES
In Wisconsin, the court last month ruled that the current legislative maps are unconstitutional because many districts aren’t contiguous. The court ordered that either the Legislature pass new maps that Democratic Gov. Tony Evers is willing to sign into law, or the court will proceed with adopting its own map.
The Wisconsin Supreme Court listens to arguments from Wisconsin Assistant Attorney General Anthony D. Russomanno, representing Gov. Tony Evers, during a redistricting hearing at the state Capitol, on Nov. 21, 2023, in Madison, Wis. Two consultants were hired to analyze new legislative boundary lines after the state’s Supreme Court invalidated the existing Republican-drawn maps. (Ruthie Hauge/The Capital Times via AP, Pool, File)
The consultants were hired to analyze maps submitted to the court by the Legislature, Evers and others, and report back on their findings.
The consultants — who have the authority to recommend changes to the submitted maps or to create their own — have had a hand in reshaping districts in other states.
Jonathan Cervas, of Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, redrew New York’s congressional and state Senate maps after a court struck down ones adopted by the Democratic-led Legislature. Bernard Grofman, of the University of California, Irvine, helped redraw Virginia’s federal and state legislative districts after a bipartisan commission deadlocked.
Conservative justices also objected to the hiring of the consultants, saying their selection, the legal authority to appoint them and their responsibilities all raise serious questions.
WISCONSIN REPUBLICANS PASS REDISTRICTING REFORM PLAN, GOV. EVERS CALLS IT ‘BOGUS’
The maps from parties to the lawsuit are due by Jan. 12, with supporting arguments due 10 days later. Reports from the consultants are due by Feb. 1, with responses a week later. That means the court will release new maps likely sometime in late February or early March unless the Legislature acts first.
The state elections commission has said maps must be in place by March 15 if the new districts are to be in play for the November election.
Republican lawmakers last week asked the Wisconsin Supreme Court to stay and reconsider its 4-3 ruling throwing out the GOP-drawn maps. Thursday was the deadline for parties to the lawsuit to submit their arguments.
The court is unlikely to reverse its ruling. The liberal four-justice majority voted in favor of ordering new maps, with the three conservative justices dissenting.
The legislative electoral maps drawn by the Legislature in 2011 cemented the Republican Party’s majorities, which now stand at 64-35 in the Assembly and 22-11 — a supermajority — in the Senate.
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Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., spoke candidly on Wednesday, defending her outbursts during President Donald Trump’s State of the Union address.
Omar, along with colleague Rep. Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich., who was seated next to her, appeared on video repeatedly interrupting and gesturing toward Trump several times throughout his speech.
Omar appeared to shout “You are a murderer” and “You’re a liar.”
Rep. Ilhan Omar, right, with Rep. Rashida Tlaib at her side, spoke at a news conference at the State Capitol. (Renee Jones Schneider/Star Tribune via Getty Images)
When appearing on CNN, Omar was pressed by host Wolf Blitzer, who noted that House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., asked members of his caucus to either sit in silence or to not attend at all.
“Should you have just boycotted the address? And do you think you violated the guidelines set out by your own leader?” he asked.
“No, I think it was really unavoidable. The president talked about protecting Americans, and I just had to remind him that his administration was responsible for killing two of my constituents,” Omar responded.
“Do you have any regrets at all about the interaction we played between you and President Trump just last night?” Blitzer asked.
“I do not, and I think many people look at that moment when the president says, ‘It is our responsibility to protect Americans,’ and he does not acknowledge the fact that two Americans, two of my constituents, two of our neighbors, were killed,” she said. “And it was important for me to just remind the American people that the president and his administration was responsible for killing two American citizens.”
Blitzer proceeded to ask, with hindsight in mind, whether she still thinks she made the right choice by showing up.
‘SQUAD’ MEMBER WEARS ‘F— ICE’ PIN ON HOUSE FLOOR DURING TRUMP ADDRESS
Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., left, and Rep. Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich., shout at President Donald Trump as he delivers his State of the Union address during a joint session of Congress at the U.S. Capitol Feb. 24, 2026, in Washington, D.C. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
“I brought four Minnesotans up as guests for the Minnesota delegation. It was important for us to be there, to bear witness, to hold space for our constituents that have lived through an occupation from federal law enforcement, that have been terrorized, that have seen our neighbors been killed and traumatized in so many ways and, so, no. I think it was really important for my constituents to see me there,” she said.
“It was really important to my constituents to hear that. I was reminding the president that Renee Good and Alex Pretti were killed under this administration.”
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Democrats have rallied around the deaths of Alex Pretti and Renee Nicole Good as a means to criticize ICE and immigration enforcement efforts. (Stefani Reynolds/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Fox News Digital reached out to the White House for comment.
It responded with a Truth Social post from Trump in which he called for critics like Omar and Tlaib to be put on a boat and “send them back from where they came.”
Fox News’ Morgan Phillips contributed to this report.
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The impact and history of autos in Detroit, The Motor City
Here are some facts about Detroit’s auto industry.
Rex Satterfield hoped to see his 1956 Chevrolet Bel Air convertible snag one of the BASF Great 8 finalist spots at this year’s Detroit Autorama. But winning the Ridler Award — one of the highest honors in the custom car business — was something he didn’t foresee.
“It’s just overwhelming right now,” said the man from Russellville, Tennessee, as he left a ballroom at downtown’s Huntington Place and made his way back to the show floor on Sunday, March 1. “We weren’t expecting this.”
Getting a car recognized as one of the BASF Great 8 vehicles is a win in and of itself as they are considered the “absolute pinnacle of custom automotive craftsmanship worldwide,” according to the show. The cars undergo an intensive judging process.
And this effort had an unexpected and emotional complication with the passing in December 2024 of the original builder, Jeff Wolfenbarger, who was battling cancer even as he continued working on the car named “Elegant Lady.”
Kevin Riffey of Kevin Riffey’s Hot Rods and Restorations in Knoxville stepped in to finish the work Wolfenbarger started. He’d had two other cars in the past make the Great 8. He said the goal with this vehicle was straightforward, calling it a “purpose-built show car.”
From its prominent spot at the front of the show floor, “Elegant Lady” sported a creamy exterior, dubbed Light Coffee. The car carries a 1,000 horsepower Don Hardy race engine. The gauges, wheels and gas tank are custom, and the dash is from a 1956 Pontiac.
Satterfield plans to show the car around some and enjoy the moment with it. He said he’s been a car guy since he was a little kid.
The Ridler Award, named in honor of Detroit Autorama’s first publicist, Don Ridler, comes with a $10,000 prize. It was awarded on the final day of this year’s Detroit Autorama, which ran Friday, Feb. 27-Sunday, March 1. This was the event’s 73rd year.
Eric D. Lawrence is the senior car culture reporter at the Detroit Free Press. Send your tips and suggestions about cool automotive stuff to elawrence@freepress.com. Become a subscriber. Submit a letter to the editor at freep.com/letters.
MILWAUKEE – Forecast from FOX6 Meteorologist Lisa Michaels
Frosty Monday morning with temps in the teens inland to low 20s near the lake.
Mostly sunny to sunny skies on Monday. Highs in the mid-40s inland, upper 30s near the lake.
A total lunar eclipse will happen Tuesday morning, total eclipse from 5-6am. It may be tough to see due to increasing clouds.
Increasing clouds on Tuesday with highs in the low 40s. Chance of rain and storms possible Wednesday through Friday with warming temperatures.
Today: 39 Lake. Mostly sunny.
High: 44°
Wind: SE 5-10
Tonight: Partly cloudy this evening, mostly clear overnight.
Low: 27°
Wind: SE 5
Tuesday: 39 Lake. Mostly cloudy.
High: 43°
Wind: E 5-10
Wednesday:41 Lake. Chance for scattered showers and t-storms.
AM Low: 32° High: 45°
Wind: E 5-10
Thursday: 39 Lake. Mostly cloudy. Chance storms.
AM Low: 37° High: 42°
Wind: NE 5-10
Friday: Chance for showers and t-storms Warmer. Warming at night.
AM Low: 37° High: 57°
Wind: SE 5-15
Saturday: Mostly cloudy with AM rain showers. Blustery with falling afternoon temperatures.
AM Low: 47° High: 53°
Wind: NE 5-10
6-day planner
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Maps and radar
We have a host of maps and radars on the FOX6 Weather page that are updating regularly — to provide you the most accurate assessment of the weather. From a county-by-county view to the Midwest regional radar and a national view — it’s all there.
School and business closings
When the weather gets a little dicey, schools and businesses may shut down. Monitor the latest list of closings, cancellations, and delays reported in southeast Wisconsin.
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