Common Cause Wisconsin Executive Director Jay Heck hopes you see more candidates from both parties enter the fray in the coming years after the state went through its first election under new electoral maps. When the maps were released earlier this year, it created seats that were either wide open or pitted incumbents against each other in primaries. As a result, Republicans saw their majorities narrow in the Assembly (64-35 to 52-44) and the Senate (22-11 to 18-14). While there were still double-digit wins in some districts like Rep. Joel Kitchens capturing the First Assembly District, Heck points out several races across the state that were much closer than they have been in years. He says the chambers are more representative of how the state voted in the other races with Republican former President Donald Trump narrowly defeating Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris for the presidency and Democratic U.S. Senator Tammy Baldwin doing the same to Republican Eric Hovde for the Senate. He believes tighter races could get more people off the sidelines and involved.

Republican leaders told the Associated Press that the new maps, huge spending, and issue distortion were the reasons why they lost ground in the Wisconsin Legislature while still celebrating the wins they received, including the race for the White House.