Tuesday, July 7, 2026

Wisconsin 2026 elections: Democrat Zach Holden challenges freshman GOP incumbent Lindee Brill in 27th Assembly District

 
Prior to redistricting, the 27th Assembly District cracked the north side neighborhoods of the City of Sheboygan, diluting the vote in the least conservative municipality in Sheboygan County.   The city is now located wholly within the 26th Assembly District, which is represented by a Democrat.
 
Maps and election results:  Ballotpedia

Reactionary conservative Lindee Brill won her first election to the Assembly by 35 points in one of the state's Trumpiest districts.  Zach Holden needs to do a better job in getting his name out there.




Related reading:

Malia Jones explains:
Two core concepts of gerrymandering were central to the arguments presented to the high court: cracking and packing. A third process, known as stacking, also crops up in gerrymandered political maps, but was not the focus of Gill v. Whitford.
Cracking and packing both refer to specific ways of drawing legislative boundaries with the outcomes of elections in mind. These two processes operate in tension with one another, but both can be implemented by a party in power seeking to maximize its electoral chances through gerrymandering. 
Packing refers to the practice of drawing particular districts in such a way as to ensure that another party's candidate wins that seat by a tremendous margin. Although the opposing party is all but guaranteed the seat, packing makes surrounding districts less competitive, and thus tips the balance of power in the legislative body overall toward the ruling party. 
Cracking involves drawing districts in such a way as to divide a concentration of specific types of voters across several districts such that they are a minority in each one, with practically no hope of achieving representation in any of the districts. This practice also helps make districts less competitive. [emphasis added]

Related election posts:
1st Assembly District.  (6/11/2026)
2nd Assembly District.  (6/14/2026)
3rd Assembly District.  (6/15/2026)
4th Assembly District.  (6/17/2026)
5th Assembly District.  (6/18/2026)
6th Assembly District.  (6/20/2026)
7th Assembly District.  (6/21/2026)
8th Assembly District.  (6/21/2026)
9th Assembly District.  (6/22/2026)
10th Assembly District.  (6/23/2026)

11th Assembly District.  (6/23/2026)
12th Assembly District.  (4/17/2026)
13th Assembly District.  (6/25/2026)
14th Assembly District.  (6/25/2026)
15th Assembly District.  (6/25/2026)
16th Assembly District.  (4/17/2026)
17th Assembly District.  (6/30/2026)
18th Assembly District.  (6/30/2026)
24th Assembly District.  (4/19/2026)
26th Assembly District.  (4/17/2026)

34th Assembly District.  (4/24/2026)
35th Assembly District.  (4/15/2026)
37th Assembly District.  (4/20/2026)


50th Assembly District.  (4/24/2026)
53rd Assembly District.  (4/29/2026)
58th Assembly District.  (4/12/2026)
59th Assembly District.  (4/10/2026)

60th Assembly District.  (4/10/2026)
69th Assembly District.  (4/29/2026)



93rd Assembly District.  (4/11/2026) 
97th Assembly District.  (4/23/2026)
99th Assembly District.  (4/18/2026)

17th Senate District.  (4/14/2026)
23rd Senate District.  (4/15/2026)
31st Senate District.  (4/15/2026)

That explosion you heard was "Supergirl" bombing at the box office

 
Top healdine:  SlashFilm
Bottom headline:  Variety

Bill Bria reports for SlashFilm on the wishful thinking of James Gunn and Peter Safran:
James Gunn and Peter Safran's new DC Studios universe has so far been able to reap the benefit of so much trial-and-error over the last decade and change. Last year's "Superman" presented a fully-formed universe for its titular hero, one where other notable characters who aren't a typical "Superman" supporting player could and did turn up naturally. This week's "Supergirl" continues the trend, by having Kara Zor-El (Milly Alcock) cross paths with the wild and crazy Czarnian bounty hunter, Lobo (Jason Momoa). To be sure, Lobo's role in "Supergirl" is fully a supporting one, and he's a natural part of the story. Yet his presence is significant enough that it feels like he's being set up for his own potential spin-off. While nothing is guaranteed (after all, Mark Ruffalo's Hulk still hasn't gotten his own film), Momoa's Lobo has enough gas in the tank to make a potential solo movie sound intriguing rather than obligatory. 

United States and Canada reports no cases of bird flu during the past month

 
Graphic and headline:  WATT Poultry, 7/6/2026

Roy Graber reports:
The seasonal slowdown of the spread of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) in North America has arrived, with no confirmed cases of the virus appearing in U.S. commercial poultry flocks in more than a month. 
According to information from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, the last instance of HPAI in a commercial flock was confirmed June 3 in a commercial meat duck flock in Elkhart County, Indiana. APHIS further disclosed that the control area surrounding that premises was released on June 23.

Other bird flu posts:
July 2026

June 21-30

June 11-20:

June 1-10:

May 16-31

May 11-15

May 6-10

May 1-5:

April 26-30:

April 21-25:
California bird flu news:  It's everywhere, it's everywhere!  (4/23)

April 16-20
 
April 11-15:

April 6-10:  
Even the 1% have to deal with bird flu  (The Hamptons Long Island edition).  (4/9)

April 1-5
Lancaster County Pennsylvania reports yet another case of bird flu. (4/1

March 26-31:

March 21-25:

March 16-20:

March 11-15, 2025

March 6-10, 2026.  

March 1-5, 2026

February 20-28,2026
SHOCKER!!  Dead birds found in Ohio gated community.  Bird flu suspected.  (2/21)

February 10-19, 2026
February 1-9, 2026

January 21-31, 2026

January 11-20, 2026
New York tells resident don't touch those dead birds.  (1/17)

January 1-10, 2026
Bird flu strain of avian influenza:  "The picture has grown darker and stranger than most would have imagined".  (1/8)
Bird flu reported on Martha's Vineyard in Massachusetts. (1/8)Dozens of vultures die of bird flu in North Carolina.  (1/8)

December 16-31, 2025

December 1-15, 2025

November 15-30, 2025

November 1-15, 2025

October 2025

September 2025

April-August 2025