Supreme Court Won’t Hear Lawsuit to Overturn Election
Petitioners had insufficient evidence to go before the court. And sought disenfranchisement of every Wisconsin voter.
The Wisconsin Supreme Court once again narrowly voted not to take up a suit that sought to change the results of the presidential election.
This time, the court voted 4-3 not to grant an original action — litigation before the supreme court — to a lawsuit filed by the Wisconsin Voters Alliance against the Wisconsin Elections Commission.
This is the third lawsuit filed by President Donald Trump‘s campaign or his allies that has been rejected by the court.
“And there’s more,” he writes. “We should, we are told, enjoin the Wisconsin Elections Commission from certifying the election so that Wisconsin’s presidential electors can be chosen by the legislature instead, and then compel the Governor to certify those electors.”
As Urban Milwaukee reported, the suit is challenging 156,807 votes in the state. The plaintiffs alleged that among them were illegal votes, and legal votes not yet counted.
Attorneys Erick Kaardal, special counsel to Amistad Project of the Thomas More Society and Gregory M. Erickson filed the petition on behalf of the plaintiffs. Kaardal was a member of the legal team that unsuccessfully tried to get Kanye West on the ballot in Wisconsin.
In his concurring opinion, Hagedorn, noting that the petitioners were asking the state throw out the results of the election and have the state legislature choose the electors, wrote, “At least no one can accuse the petitioners of timidity.” Adding, “Such a move would appear to be unprecedented in American history.”
Hagedorn went on, “One might expect that this solemn request would be paired with evidence of serious errors tied to a substantial and demonstrated set of illegal votes. Instead, the evidentiary support rests almost entirely on the unsworn expert report of a former campaign employee that offers statistical estimates based on call center samples and social media research.”
He said the petition falls short of the “compelling evidence” and “legal support” needed for “the court-ordered disenfranchisement of every Wisconsin voter.” This specific relief sought by the petitioners, Hagedorn wrote, was “sobering.”
He called it the “most dramatic invocation of judicial power I have ever seen.” And wrote, “Judicial acquiescence to such entreaties built on so flimsy a foundation would do indelible damage to every future election.”
In her dissenting opinion, Chief Justice Patience Roggensack wrote “ Justice Hagedorn has the cart before the horse in regard to our consideration of this petition for an original action. We grant petitions to exercise our jurisdiction based on whether the legal issues presented are of state wide concern, not based on the remedies requested.”
She went on, “Granting a petition does not carry with it the court’s view that the remedy sought is appropriate for the legal issues raised.”
“As I said as I began, it is critical that voting in Wisconsin elections not only be fair, but that the public also perceives voting as having been fairly conducted,” Roggensack wrote. “The Wisconsin Supreme Court should not walk away from its constitutional obligation to the people of Wisconsin for a third time.”
Lawsuits
Having trouble keeping them all straight? Cases are listed in the order filed.
- Wisconsin Voters Alliance petition – rejected by the Wisconsin Supreme Court
- Mueller dropbox petition – rejected by Wisconsin Supreme Court
- Trump campaign Wisconsin Supreme Court petition – rejected by Wisconsin Supreme Court
- Sidney Powell “massive election fraud” federal petition – pending
- Trump campaign federal suit – pending
- Trump Milwaukee County suit – newly filed
- Trump Dane County suit – merged into Milwaukee suit
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More about the 2020 General Election
- GOP State Legislators Asked Pence Not Certify Election - Melanie Conklin - Jan 14th, 2021
- Rep. Hintz: Condemns Republican Legislators’ Lies and Dangerous Rhetoric - State Rep. Gordon Hintz - Jan 14th, 2021
- Tiffany, Fitzgerald Object To Some Biden Electors - Shawn Johnson - Jan 7th, 2021
- Sen. Baldwin: “It’s Disgraceful” - Urban Milwaukee - Jan 6th, 2021
- Rep Moore Blames Trump for Today’s Chaos - Urban Milwaukee - Jan 6th, 2021
- Rep. Gallagher: “We are witnessing absolute banana republic crap in the United States Capitol right now” - Urban Milwaukee - Jan 6th, 2021
- Back in the News: Cleta Mitchell Resigns from Foley Firm - Bruce Murphy - Jan 5th, 2021
- Gallagher Assails GOP Push to Nullify Election - Rob Mentzer - Jan 5th, 2021
- Back in the News: Foley Firm Faces Blowback on Trump Call - Bruce Murphy - Jan 5th, 2021
- Johnson Discusses Election Integrity, Electoral Commission on Fox News - U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson - Jan 5th, 2021
Read more about 2020 General Election here
More about the Trump's Election Lawsuits
- Federal Judge Tears Apart Election Lawsuit - Graham Kilmer - Jan 4th, 2021
- Op Ed: Hagedorn Wisconsin’s Person of The Year - John Torinus - Dec 30th, 2020
- Trump Asks U.S. Supreme Court to Overturn Wisconsin’s Election - Graham Kilmer - Dec 29th, 2020
- Trump campaign: Takes Wisconsin constitutional fight to Supreme Court - Donald Trump - Dec 29th, 2020
- Wisconsin Republicans Join New Federal Election Lawsuit - Jeramey Jannene - Dec 23rd, 2020
- Justices Face Anti-Semitic, Misogynist Attacks After Trump Ruling - Ruth Conniff - Dec 18th, 2020
- Ron Johnson Parrots Trump’s Rejected Legal Arguments - Shawn Johnson - Dec 17th, 2020
- Murphy’s Law: Why Republicans Won’t End Election Complaints - Bruce Murphy - Dec 14th, 2020
- Statement of Republican Electors Meeting - Republican Party of Wisconsin - Dec 14th, 2020
- AG Kaul Issues Statement on Wisconsin Supreme Court Ruling on the Challenge to Wisconsin’s Election Results - Josh Kaul - Dec 14th, 2020
Read more about Trump's Election Lawsuits here
Roggensack justifying things the way she does is akin to Susan Collins’ impeachment vote. No matter how fancy they sound, you just can’t trust that they’ll rule with the same level head.
Why does this original action thing even exist?
Good on Hagedorn for not towing the line.
so if i understand roggensack correctly, she would like the court to hear all petitions regardless of their efficacy or the sense of them. a nice waste of time and money and in this case, their is no obligation to the wisconsin people. oh i misspoke. the obligation to the wisconsin people is for the court to be judicial, rational, and not get sucked in to hearing petitions that make no sense.