The Wisconsin Supreme Court may have handed Republicans an advantage in a key swing state ahead of the 2026 midterm elections, according to Fox News.
The liberal majority court, without explanation, refused to hear a challenge by Democrats who sought to alter the state's current congressional districts. Currently, six of Wisconsin's eight congressional districts are held by Republicans. Republican Representative Derrick Van Orden in Wisconsin's 3rd Congressional District and Bryan Steil in the 1st Congressional District would have faced far more contentious elections if the Court had elected to hear the challenge and handed the Democrats a victory.
Jacob Rubashkin from Inside Elections told Fox News:
Every seat matters in the fight for the House of Representatives when all it takes is a three-seat gain to flip control, and a new map in Wisconsin could have helped Democrats in at least two seats, the 1st and 3rd Districts.
Currently, Republicans hold a razor-thin majority in the House, holding 220 seats, while the Democrats hold 213, down from 215 after the death of two Representatives. Whoever takes the seats of the deceased Representatives are likely to be Democrats.
Democrats are still confident they will be able to flip seats in Wisconsin's 1st and 3rd Districts. In a statement to Fox News, Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) spokesperson Katie Smith said:
It’s already clear that Derrick Van Orden and Bryan Steil are running scared because they cannot defend their records — whether it’s their votes to cut Medicaid while giving tax breaks to billionaires, or their 100% support for sweeping tariffs that are raising costs on Wisconsin families. Wisconsin voters see that Van Orden and Steil sold them out, and they’ll fire them next year,
Republicans disagree. While Wisconsin may be a bit safer from losing seats to Democrats, Rubashkin added:
Ultimately, while we expect a few redistricting changes in Ohio, Utah and potentially a few other states, the overall picture remains unchanged: Republicans are looking to buck history in an expensive and nationwide slog for 218 seats,