Wisconsin Judge Makes Key Ballot Ruling Ahead of 2024 Elections

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A Wisconsin judge has made a big ruling ahead of the 2024 elections in response to a GOP filing regarding a previous absentee ballot ruling on behalf of disabled residents.

Dane County Circuit Judge Everett Mitchell refused earlier this month “to put on hold his ruling that allows disabled people in Wisconsin to be emailed absentee ballots at home in November’s presidential election in the closely watched battleground state,” the Associated Press reported.

Republicans asked Mitchell not to enforce his ruling while the case in on appeal. But the judge rejected their plea, saying putting his ruling on hold “would inflict significant harm on both the disability rights advocates and the public interest.”

The AP reported that the state appeals court will now determine whether to halt the ruling that provides a new method for an unspecified number of disabled voters to cast their ballots in Wisconsin before the Nov. 5 election.

On June 25, Mitchell issued a temporary injunction that permitted clerks to email ballots to voters who self-certify that they need assistance to read or mark a paper ballot. These voters can then cast their ballots electronically at home using assistive devices. However, they are still required to print and mail the ballots back to the clerks or return them in person, the report said.

Other absentee voters can request mail-in ballots electronically, but they are then sent via mail for physical marking and return. Previously, state law permitted the electronic transmission of ballots exclusively to military and overseas voters.

All absentee ballots must be received by clerks before the polls close on Nov. 5 to be counted. The AP said neither side involved in the lawsuit provided estimates regarding the number of disabled voters who might utilize the electronic ballot.

The report noted further:

Nearly 100,000 Wisconsin adults suffer from vision difficulties, according to statistics compiled by state health officials. A little more than 307,000 adults have difficulty moving, including difficulty walking, climbing stairs, reaching, lifting, or carrying things.

Disability Rights Wisconsin, the League of Women Voters, and four disabled voters brought the lawsuit in April. The Republican-controlled state Legislature intervened and filed the appeal and request for a stay while that is pending.

During a court hearing on Tuesday, the Legislature’s attorney, Misha Tseytlin, indicated that he would seek a stay from the appeals court. Republicans contended on appeal that the judge improperly altered the status quo too close to the election. The Wisconsin Department of Justice, representing the elections commission, also argued that the process posed security risks and could lead to confusion.

According to its attorney, Karla Keckhaver, who spoke in court on Tuesday, the elections commission has initiated the “complex process” to comply with the court’s order. The process involves providing guidance to over 1,800 local clerks who manage elections and training them on the software required to send out the ballots.

Questions about absentee ballot eligibility and procedures have become a major political issue in Wisconsin, where four of the past six presidential elections have been decided by less than a percentage point, the AP noted.

In June, the Wisconsin Supreme Court issued a ruling that could also significantly impact the presidential election.

In a 4 – 3 decision, the court ruled to allow ballot drop boxes in the 2024 election using what some might call legal gymnastics. Earlier, the same court struck down the use of such boxes after the 2020 election, but a majority of justices at the time leaned Republican.

Justice Ann Walsh Bradley agreed that the state Constitution does not explicitly allow drop boxes, but it does allow voters to leave their ballots with the County Clerk, and therefore, the County Clerk may choose to use drop boxes, Just The News reported at the time.

Trump won Wisconsin in 2016 but lost the state to Biden in 2020.

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