Trial over new voter maps to begin Thursday

MILWAUKEE (AP) - After a two-day delay, a federal trial in a case involving the state's new voter maps is now set to begin Thursday.

The case deals with redistricting. That's the process in which, once a decade, lawmakers modify that maps that determine how boundary lines are drawn between voting districts.

GOP lawmakers approved maps last year that have been signed into law. However, Democrats and a Latino group sued, alleging the maps divided certain blocs of voters and thereby weakened their voting power.

The judges twice tried to have lawyers in the case appeal to lawmakers to voluntarily revisit the issue. A court clerk said Wednesday the latest attempt failed, and now both sides will prepare for a trial expected to last from Thursday morning to late Friday evening.