The Wisconsin Supreme Court has appointed a three-judge panel to oversee a constitutional challenge to the state's congressional map, marking the latest legal battle over Wisconsin's electoral districts. The case, *Wisconsin Business Leaders for Democracy v. Wisconsin Elections Commission* (2025 WI 52), was filed in July 2025 and involves allegations that the current congressional districts violate the Wisconsin Constitution.
The lawsuit was initiated on July 8, 2025, when Wisconsin Business Leaders for Democracy and a group of individual voters filed a summons and complaint in Dane County against the Wisconsin Elections Commission and other defendants. The plaintiffs allege that Wisconsin's current congressional map violates various provisions of the state constitution, though the specific constitutional violations cited in the complaint were not detailed in the court's November 25, 2025 order.
The case also includes Glenn Grothman and other parties as intervening defendants, suggesting that current members of Congress or other interested parties have sought to join the litigation to defend the existing district boundaries.
The legal challenge follows Wisconsin's established procedures for redistricting litigation. Under Wisconsin Statute § 801.50(4m), county clerks must notify the state Supreme Court within five days of any lawsuit challenging congressional or legislative district apportionment. The Dane County Clerk of Courts fulfilled this requirement by notifying the Wisconsin Supreme Court on July 10, 2025, just two days after the lawsuit was filed.
Wisconsin's redistricting statute requires that venue for such challenges be determined according to specific procedures outlined in state law. Wisconsin Statute § 731.035(1) mandates that upon receiving notice of a redistricting challenge, the Supreme Court must appoint a panel of three circuit court judges to hear the matter. The statute requires the court to select one judge from each of three different circuits and designate one circuit as the venue for all hearings and filings.
The Wisconsin Supreme Court opened miscellaneous Case No. 2025XX1330 to handle the redistricting challenge and has been managing the procedural aspects of the case since receiving notification in July. The court's November 25, 2025 order indicates that by September 25, 2025, the court had already entered orders requiring the parties to submit simultaneous briefs and response briefs, suggesting the litigation has moved into the substantive briefing phase.
This legal challenge represents part of ongoing efforts to reform Wisconsin's electoral maps through the courts. Wisconsin has been the subject of numerous redistricting battles in recent years, with various groups challenging both congressional and legislative district boundaries on both state and federal constitutional grounds.
The appointment of a three-judge panel is standard procedure for redistricting cases in Wisconsin, designed to ensure that such politically sensitive matters receive thorough judicial review while maintaining geographic representation from different parts of the state. The panel structure also helps ensure that no single circuit bears the full burden of these complex and often contentious cases.
Wisconsin Business Leaders for Democracy, the lead plaintiff organization, appears to be a coalition of business leaders advocating for electoral reform, though the specific nature of their constitutional claims against the current congressional map remains to be detailed in court filings. The inclusion of individual voters as co-plaintiffs strengthens the case by providing direct standing to challenge the districts.
The timing of the lawsuit, filed in July 2025, positions the challenge well in advance of the 2026 midterm elections, potentially allowing time for any ordered changes to be implemented before the next congressional elections. However, redistricting litigation often involves complex procedural and substantive issues that can extend over months or years.
The case will now proceed before the appointed three-judge panel, which will evaluate the constitutional claims against Wisconsin's congressional districts. The panel will need to determine whether the current map violates specific provisions of the Wisconsin Constitution and, if so, what remedial measures may be required.
Given Wisconsin's history of redistricting litigation and the state's role as a competitive battleground in national elections, this case is likely to draw significant attention from political observers, legal scholars, and advocacy groups on multiple sides of the redistricting debate. The outcome could have implications not only for Wisconsin's congressional representation but also for how other states approach similar constitutional challenges to their electoral maps.
The three-judge panel's eventual ruling will be subject to potential appeal back to the Wisconsin Supreme Court, meaning the ultimate resolution of Wisconsin's congressional district boundaries may not be determined until the full litigation process concludes.