During the State of the State Address this week, Governor Tony Evers introduced his plan to issue an executive order that will establish a nonpartisan redistricting commission to propose new legislative maps.

Late last year, the Common Council voted unanimously to approve legislation I sponsored directing the Election Commission to place a referendum on the April 7, 2020, ballot that will allow City of Milwaukee voters to weigh in on whether the city should request the Wisconsin Legislature to pass a law establishing a bipartisan process for drawing its legislative maps.

I applaud efforts by Governor Evers to eliminate partisan gerrymandering in the State of Wisconsin by forming a nonpartisan commission that will be tasked with creating fair, impartial legislative maps throughout the state and Milwaukee.

Like the Governor, I believe we must allow citizens to have a voice when it comes to creating legislative maps following the upcoming 2020 Census. Through this commission I believe the state can establish a non-partisan redistricting procedure for drawing legislative maps that can create a sense of fairness in 2020 and beyond.

We simply must act because the current redistricting process is weakening the power of our citizens, by allowing gerrymandering that benefits just one party (in our case, the Republican Party and its candidates).

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