Schimel Asks SCOTUS To Stay Gerrymandering Ruling

State Attorney General Brad Schimel has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to temporarily block a lower court order that would force Republicans to redraw Wisconsin’s legislative map.

Schimel is appealing a federal court decision from late last year that struck down Wisconsin’s Republican-drawn legislative map as an unconstitutional gerrymander. In a second ruling issued earlier this year, the same court ordered Wisconsin’s map redrawn by November.

In a brief filed Monday, Schimel argued the Supreme Court was likely to reverse the lower court decision and uphold Wisconsin’s legislative map. Given that likelihood, he urged justices to “stay” the lower court’s ruling, which would keep it from taking effect while the appeal unfolds.

“A stay would become necessary to avoid Wisconsin wasting substantial sovereign resources to draw a map that, in all likelihood, will never become law,” Schimel told the court.

While the Supreme Court has yet to announce whether it will hear Wisconsin’s appeal, legal observers and redistricting experts expect justices will want to get involved.