In a Victory for Voting Rights, Honig V. WEC Ensures That Voters Cannot Be Disenfranchised by Government Errors
MADISON, Wis. – Today’s decision by Dane County Judge Everett Mitchell in Honig v. Wisconsin Elections Commission clarified how the right to vote protects Wisconsin’s absentee voters. In particular, Judge Mitchell ruled that Wisconsin voters cannot be disenfranchised solely for election errors attributable to the government. He further confirmed that this general principle applies equally to absentee voters and those who cast their ballots at the polls on election day.
“The right to vote is no empty promise. It is a constitutional guarantee that our votes will count,” said Scott Thompson, Law Forward Staff Counsel. “So, today’s decision is a cause for celebration, a major victory for voting rights in Wisconsin. The right to vote protects us all, whether we vote in person or absentee.”
The case arose following this year’s April election when the Wisconsin Elections Commission (WEC) attempted to disenfranchise 23 absentee voters. Those voters did everything right, but their local government failed to deliver their absentee ballots to the place where they would be counted in a timely fashion. WEC relied on a state statute, Wis. Stat. § 6.84, to find that these ballots could not be counted. Judge Mitchell’s ruling found that WEC violated the Wisconsin Constitution by following the statute rather than upholding the right to vote and making sure the votes were counted.
Read the decision here.
NOTE: This press release was submitted to Urban Milwaukee and was not written by an Urban Milwaukee writer. While it is believed to be reliable, Urban Milwaukee does not guarantee its accuracy or completeness.
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