As I See It
Supreme Court ruling a victory for Wisconsin voters
It is a victory for Wisconsin voters. The Wisconsin Supreme Court has ruled that the Wisconsin Elections Commission should not remove from the voter rolls the names of those who may have moved. This is the culmination of a two year fight, with Democrats wanting the names to remain, while Republicans wanted them purged. They tried to argue that the names of voters who haven’t voted in recent elections should be removed from the rolls because it could lead to voter fraud. The state’s highest court didn’t see it that way, and a conservative justice authored the majority opinion. Instead, the Supreme Court says, it should be up to individual Wisconsin municipalities to determine which names remain on voter rolls. There are about 69,000 people on voter registration lists who haven’t voted in a couple years. But that doesn’t mean they won’t in the next election. Republicans wanted the names of those who didn’t respond within 30 days to a mailing asking them to update their address to be removed from voting lists. But what is the hurry? It is of course important that voter lists be accurate. That can still happen. Local governments can send postcards to these missing voters more often. That is a better outcome. The court’s ruling ensures that no legitimately registered voter will have to register again in order to exercise their right to vote, and blocks yet another attempt to block voting rights.
David Schneider
April 12, 2021 at 8:37 am
Although I am a conservative and vote conservative I agree with the ruling! What’s the rush? Some people like my wife do not vote in every election. One thing I disagree with is the way you framed the article, this was not a attempt to limit voting rights because you can always reregister In 3 minutes! Stop the spread of disinformation! Our system is by far the best on earth!! This is why we don’t need court reform we need to use common sense .
Reid Magney
April 12, 2021 at 12:49 pm
Hi Scott,
Unfortunately, you’ve confused two different laws in your commentary.
One law is about people who have moved and the other is about people who have not voted recently. The Wisconsin Supreme Court said that the law about what to do when a local election official receives reliable information that one of their voters has moved does not apply to the Wisconsin Elections Commission.
There is a separate law that requires the WEC to look back after every November election and identify who has not voted in the past four years. The law says WEC must send those people a mailing giving them 30 days to respond if they want to remain on the voter list. WEC is getting ready to send out mailings to these voters this spring.
Thanks!
M Scott
April 12, 2021 at 12:57 pm
Deceased peoples’ name should be deleted & sociial security records, I pray, would be able to verify with.