Appleton Post Crescent | 07/25/2010
In an ideal world, drawing legislative maps would be blind to political parties. But in the real world, redistricting is contentious, often tinged with partisan bickering and can lead to expensive lawsuits.
Milwaukee mayor and Democratic gubernatorial candidate Tom Barrett has a plan that he says "takes the sharp partisanship out of the drawing of the plans" and ends incumbent protection.
How? By having the state's nonpartisan Government Accountability Board review proposed maps submitted by lawmakers, election groups and everyday citizens to feature districts evenly divided between Republicans and Democrats.
Lawmakers and the governor would then have to sign off on the map. He would start the new map plan next year, after receiving the 2010 Census data.
It sounds egalitarian — and Barrett's plan definitely is a step in the right direction. However, no group is completely nonpartisan.
Six former judges appointed by the governor make up the GAB, which was formed in 2008 to run elections and administer state ethics laws. So there's a good chance it's not completely unbiased.
This plan is an improvement over the current system in which lawmakers draw up the maps, giving an advantage to the majority party.
If Barrett's plan were enacted, it may not necessarily solve the problem he's trying to solve. After the GAB approves it, the map would still require approval from lawmakers and the governor. Also, as we've seen in the past, the performance of incumbents and waffling voters can make for unexpected outcomes, regardless of how the districts are drawn.
Barrett interestingly submitted his redistricting plan along with the signatures needed to get him on the ballot for the November election, where he will be counting on the very party his plan would shift power away from.
Milwaukee mayor and Democratic gubernatorial candidate Tom Barrett has a plan that he says "takes the sharp partisanship out of the drawing of the plans" and ends incumbent protection.
How? By having the state's nonpartisan Government Accountability Board review proposed maps submitted by lawmakers, election groups and everyday citizens to feature districts evenly divided between Republicans and Democrats.
Lawmakers and the governor would then have to sign off on the map. He would start the new map plan next year, after receiving the 2010 Census data.
It sounds egalitarian — and Barrett's plan definitely is a step in the right direction. However, no group is completely nonpartisan.
Six former judges appointed by the governor make up the GAB, which was formed in 2008 to run elections and administer state ethics laws. So there's a good chance it's not completely unbiased.
This plan is an improvement over the current system in which lawmakers draw up the maps, giving an advantage to the majority party.
If Barrett's plan were enacted, it may not necessarily solve the problem he's trying to solve. After the GAB approves it, the map would still require approval from lawmakers and the governor. Also, as we've seen in the past, the performance of incumbents and waffling voters can make for unexpected outcomes, regardless of how the districts are drawn.
Barrett interestingly submitted his redistricting plan along with the signatures needed to get him on the ballot for the November election, where he will be counting on the very party his plan would shift power away from.
