UPDATE: Redistricting could cause election confusion - WKOW 27: Madison, WI Breaking News, Weather and Sports

MADISON (WKOW) -- If you're planning to vote in the August 14th primary, you might want to find out the legislative district in which you live.

Its likely changed due to the 2011 redistricting, which takes effect for this election.

It will particularly affect Assembly races, where most incumbents are now representing districts with new numbers and new neighborhoods.

Just over a year ago, Rep. Chris Taylor (D-Madison) claimed victory in Assembly District 48, representing part of Madison's east side, Monona and McFarland.

But due to redistricting, her house is now in the new 76th District.

Rep. Taylor is now running for that seat, leaving the new District 48 vacant for a newcomer.

"90 percent of my new district is new, new constituents, and they're really confused," said Rep. Taylor.  "A lot of them have not heard that they have been redistricted into a new district."

And it gets far more confusing, because the 76th used to be located further west and was represented by Terese Berceau (D-Madison).

But Rep. Berceau now lives and will run in the new 77th, formerly held by Rep. Brett Hulsey (D-Madison), who lives and will run in the new 78th, which used to be located further east.

"They changed the numbers needlessly," said Rep. Hulsey.  "I represented the 77th, they turned this into the 78th, they flip-flopped the 78th with the Isthmus. You know, you didn't have to make these changes." 

Hulsey says the new 78th District is largely the same as his old one.

But for other incumbents, like Rep. Sondy Pope-Roberts (D-Cross Plains), the changes were drastic.

"I realized I didn't have to move to continue serving in my district, that was the first big concern.  And then I looked at it and I thought, yeah, I am gonna have to move to continue serving my district, because my district left me," said Rep. Pope-Roberts.

District 79, which Pope-Roberts used to represent, moved from west of Madison to mostly north of the city.

She elected to keep much of her old district, by moving from Middleton to Cross Plains, so she could run in a three-way primary race for the new District 80.

But perhaps the most confusing change was in District 47, which was located largely in Columbia County, north of Dane County.

It's now southwest of Madison, and includes parts of Monona, McFarland and Fitchburg.

The State Legislature's web site has a page where you can punch in your address to find your legislator.

The problem is that it shows you the new district number correctly, but with the old legislator.

In other words, people in the new District 79 will see Sondy Pope-Roberts as their representative, but she won't be on the ballot there August 14th.

All of the candidates are advising people to contact their local clerk's office to be sure of where they are and who they'll be voting for on election day.

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MADISON (WKOW) -- State Representative Chris Taylor (D-Madison) won a seat in the Wisconsin Assembly by capturing the 48th District special election in the summer of 2011.

One year later, she still lives in the same house, but is running for re-election in District 76.

It's the same story for every other local Assembly incumbent, who are running in districts with not only a new number, but a new geography as well.

While it's causing some headaches for them, there's no telling how much confusion it's going to cause voters when they show up to the polls for the August 14th primary.

Many voters will look on their ballots only to find out they don't recognize the names of any Assembly candidates.

The changes are a result of Wisconsin Act 43, passed by the State Legislature in 2011 to completely redraw Assembly and Senate Districts.

Capitol Bureau Chief Greg Neumann will have a breakdown of the changes and reaction from some of the local candidates in live reports on 27 News at 5 and 6.