Wisconsin GOP Leaders Make No Election Changes in Special Session
And appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court to block absentee balloting extension.
Republican legislative leaders immediately adjourned a special session called by Gov. Tony Evers to consider a plan to conduct the spring election by mail, and appeal other election changes to the U.S. Supreme Court.
Evers, a Democrat, called a special session of the Legislature for 4 p.m. Saturday. By 4:05 p.m., the session was adjourned until Monday, though legislators signaled they did not plan any action then, either.
Here’s what today’s special session on the election looked like in the state Senate –> https://t.co/JmH5FUUC8J
— Laurel White (@lkwhite) April 4, 2020
GOP Leaders Appeal To US Supreme Court
The empty legislative session follows a week of intense back and forth over how to conduct Wisconsin’s spring election, currently scheduled for Tuesday, in the midst of a pandemic.
On Friday night, a federal appeals court ruling blocked some of the election orders put in place last week by a fedearl judge, and upheld others.
Responding to state measures intended to slow the spread of the deadly COVID-19 virus, federal Judge William Conley had granted Wisconsin clerks additional time to receive and tally absentee ballots, ruling that the deadline for the ballots would be April 13 rather than the scheduled April 7 Election Day. On Friday night, the federal 7th Circuit Court of Appeals upheld most of the order, but struck a portion that would have permitted clerks to count absentee ballots that lacked a witness signature.
State Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald and Assembly Speaker Robin Vos, both Republicans, issued a statement indicating they’ll seek even stricter limits on absentee balloting, as clerks across the state face the prospect of tallying more than a million absentee ballots in total.
Saturday evening, the Wisconsin GOP filed an appeal with the U. S. Supreme Court.
Neil Albrecht, director of the Milwaukee Election Commission, said a reversal of the judge’s extension would have “tremendous consequence to voters across the state,” and in particular on large cities that struggled to meet the massive spike in absentee ballot requests. He pointed out that some voters waited more than a week to receive their absentee ballots.
“I don’t think they should be disenfranchised due to the dynamics of administering an election in the midst of a pandemic, and some of the slowdowns that can create,” Albrecht said on a Saturday call with reporters. “I’m hopeful this state, as it should, can move forward with that April 13 deadline” for voters to return absentee ballots.
“Any type of a reversal on that extension … would further compromise the integrity of this election,” Albrecht said.
Most municipalities in the state are experiencing shortages of poll workers, and the shortages are critical in many places, a survey by the Wisconsin Elections Commission found. The number of polling places has been severely curtailed in the state’s largest cities, raising the prospect that voters will face long lines and unsafe conditions on Tuesday.
Wisconsin GOP Leaders Take No Action On Election Changes, Seek To Block Absentee Balloting Extension was originally published by Wisconsin Public Radio.
More about the 2020 Spring Primary
- Why Don Natzke Couldn’t Vote - Enjoyiana Nururdin - Aug 9th, 2020
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report highlights public health measures taken by the Milwaukee Health and Fire Departments, Department of Administration, Election Commission, and the Wisconsin Department of Health Services - City of Milwaukee Health Department - Aug 4th, 2020
- CDC Says Election Did Not Cause COVID-19 Spike - Erik Gunn - Aug 4th, 2020
- Pandemic Reduced Black Vote, Study Finds - Dee J. Hall - Jun 25th, 2020
- Did April Election Hike COVID-19 Cases? - Alana Watson - May 20th, 2020
- Elections Commission Notes ‘Lessons Learned’ - Henry Redman - May 19th, 2020
- Wisconsin Elections News: WEC Releases Analysis of Absentee Voting in April 7 Spring Election - Wisconsin Elections Commission - May 18th, 2020
- Election’s Impact on County’s COVID-19 Cases Unclear - Jeramey Jannene - May 6th, 2020
- Why State’s Voting By Mail Was Chaotic - Daniel C. Vock - May 4th, 2020
- At Least 40 COVID-19 Cases Tied to Election in Milwaukee - Graham Kilmer - Apr 24th, 2020
Read more about 2020 Spring Primary here
More about the Coronavirus Pandemic
- Governors Tony Evers, JB Pritzker, Tim Walz, and Gretchen Whitmer Issue a Joint Statement Concerning Reports that Donald Trump Gave Russian Dictator Putin American COVID-19 Supplies - Gov. Tony Evers - Oct 11th, 2024
- MHD Release: Milwaukee Health Department Launches COVID-19 Wastewater Testing Dashboard - City of Milwaukee Health Department - Jan 23rd, 2024
- Milwaukee County Announces New Policies Related to COVID-19 Pandemic - County Executive David Crowley - May 9th, 2023
- DHS Details End of Emergency COVID-19 Response - Wisconsin Department of Health Services - Apr 26th, 2023
- Milwaukee Health Department Announces Upcoming Changes to COVID-19 Services - City of Milwaukee Health Department - Mar 17th, 2023
- Fitzgerald Applauds Passage of COVID-19 Origin Act - U.S. Rep. Scott Fitzgerald - Mar 10th, 2023
- DHS Expands Free COVID-19 Testing Program - Wisconsin Department of Health Services - Feb 10th, 2023
- MKE County: COVID-19 Hospitalizations Rising - Graham Kilmer - Jan 16th, 2023
- Not Enough Getting Bivalent Booster Shots, State Health Officials Warn - Gaby Vinick - Dec 26th, 2022
- Nearly All Wisconsinites Age 6 Months and Older Now Eligible for Updated COVID-19 Vaccine - Wisconsin Department of Health Services - Dec 15th, 2022
Read more about Coronavirus Pandemic here
Vos and Fitzgerald to city: “Drop Dead”
A new low for cynical and irresponsible behavior.