Last week, Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers (D) issued a “safer at home” order: All nonessential businesses are shut down, and people who don’t live in the same household are not allowed to gather.
Yet the state is still planning to hold elections as scheduled next Tuesday, risking both public safety and extremely low voter turnout. Evers’ order expires on April 24.
The state’s Republican-controlled legislature has the power to change the date of Election Day. But that hasn’t happened. On Monday, Evers signaled the April 7 election was going to be held as planned. The presidential primary, a highly contentious seat on the state’s Supreme Court, and local offices are all on the ballot.
The majority of municipalities in Wisconsin have already reported a shortage of poll workers. State election officials reported 111 jurisdictions that do not have enough people to staff even one polling place, and 60% of all Wisconsin towns and cities were reporting staffing shortages as of Monday.
Evers has called for an expanded absentee ballot system in the state, asking for mail-in ballots to be sent to every registered voter in the state. Republican legislators rejected that proposal.
“Wisconsin election officials reported 111 jurisdictions that do not have enough people to staff even one polling place, and 60% of all Wisconsin towns and cities were reporting staffing shortages as of Monday.”
“Governor Evers just proposed procuring, printing, verifying and mandating the mailing of millions of ballots within 10 days,” state Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald, a Republican, said in a statement. “Even he knows that’s not logistically feasible. The clerks of this state should know this is a complete fantasy. The Legislature on both sides of the aisle has to know this is ridiculous.”
Republican officials in the state have warned that any changes to voting in the state would cause too much confusion.
The governor has also asked for the state to loosen rules around absentee ballots, like doing away with the witness requirement and giving state officials more time to count ballots. Nearly a million absentee ballots have been requested, which election officials say is already creating a backlog.
By law, Wisconsin’s Election Day must be held on the first Tuesday of April. Evers has already declared a public health emergency in the state, but state laws aren’t clear whether that gives him the authority to change the election date without the support of the state legislature.
A low voter turnout in the state could also have political implications for one of the state’s biggest races this year: the state Supreme Court. While technically a nonpartisan race, incumbent Wisconsin Supreme Court Justice Dan Kelly has been endorsed by President Donald Trump and has the support of Republicans. Kelly is looking to sew up a 10-year appointment, while his opponent, Dane County Circuit Judge Jill Karofsky, is hoping to weaken conservatives’ 5-2 majority on the court.
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), who trails behind former Vice President Joe Biden in the race for the Democratic presidential nomination and is still assessing his campaign, has called on Wisconsin to delay the election.
“People should not be forced to put their lives on the line to vote, which is why 15 states are now following the advice of public health experts and delaying their elections,” Sanders said in a statement Wednesday. “We urge Wisconsin to join them. The state should delay Tuesday’s vote, extend early voting and work to move entirely to vote-by-mail. While we wait for a decision, we urge our supporters to vote-by-mail.”
Wisconsin is the only state originally scheduled to vote in April that has not postponed or changed the nature of its election due to the coronavirus pandemic. Alaska and Wyoming, which are scheduled to vote on April 10 and 17, respectively, are both voting entirely by mail.