Clarke v. WEC

Case Name: Clarke v. WEC

Type of Case: Constitutional rights

Court: Wisconsin Supreme Court

Oral Arguments: November 21, 2023

Current Status: The Legislature and Governor passed new maps, so the case is now moot.

WILL HIGHLIGHTS INCONSISTENCIES WITH COURT’S POLITICAL CONSULTANTS AND LAYS OUT POTENTIAL DUE PROCESS VIOLATION IN NEW REDISTRICTING FILING

February 2024 | In our filing, we point out that the Court’s so called “experts” offer arguments inconsistent with both legal precedent and their own previous writings. We also explain how the Court’s addressing the question of partisan gerrymandering without discovery or a trial is a clear due process violation.

WILL RELEASES STATEMENT ON REDISTRICTING RULING

December 2023 | WILL condemned a new ruling from the Supreme Court of Wisconsin in favor of a lawsuit seeking to change Wisconsin’s Legislative Districts.

DEMOCRACY ALERT | WILL FILES MOTION TO INTERVENE IN REDISTRICTING CASE

October 2023 | WILL filed a motion to intervene in a lawsuit seeking to overturn Wisconsin’s Legislative Districts. The lawsuit was brought by several Left-leaning attorneys, who are trying to relitigate issues resolved just a year and a half ago.

Why We Are Intervening: Although the issues surrounding decennial redistricting were resolved by the Wisconsin Supreme Court just a year and a half ago, Petitioners are attempting to re-litigate that case. They ask the Wisconsin Supreme Court to declare the current maps unconstitutional, draw new maps from scratch, and order all sitting state senators – including those with two years left on their terms – to undergo re-election in November 2024. WILL is intervening on behalf of voters from multiple state senate districts who would see their vote disenfranchised if the Court grants the remedy sought by the lawsuit.

WILL has been on the forefront of litigation regarding legislative boundaries in Wisconsin. In August of 2021, WILL filed an original action in Johnson v. Wisconsin Elections Commission (WEC), asking the Wisconsin Supreme Court to update the legislative districts to address population changes, given that the Legislature and Governor were unable to agree on new maps. WILL successfully argued that the Wisconsin Supreme Court should ignore projected partisan outcomes and make the “least changes” possible to update the maps, to prevent the Court from getting embroiled in partisan considerations. And, when maps proposed by Governor Evers violated the U.S. Constitution’s Equal Protection Clause, WILL successfully petitioned the Supreme Court of the United States.