A far-left judge in Wisconsin, one of the few battleground states that decided the 2020 presidential election, has issued a temporary order allowing some voters to receive their absentee ballots for the 2024 election by email rather than through the U.S. Postal Service, a change that critics say will disrupt the voting process.
This decision: Litigation The lawsuit was filed in April by the Wisconsin Disability Rights Association, the League of Women Voters of Wisconsin, and four Wisconsin voters with disabilities ranging from blindness to spinal muscular atrophy. The lawsuit argues that state absentee voting laws discriminate against people with disabilities who cannot mark their ballot without the assistance of another person. The presence of others knowing the vote undermines the secrecy and integrity of a person’s personal vote, the lawsuit argues.
“I don’t think people who steal from Walmart should be prosecuted.”
Dane County Circuit Judge Everett Mitchell agreed. Last week, Mitchell Domination “Individuals with print disabilities” can receive their absentee ballots via email, a method previously reserved for military and overseas voters.
Judge Mitchell clarified that a “print disability” is one that prevents an absentee voter from “voluntarily” reading or completing their absentee ballot. His ruling also extends this exception to anyone who “self-reports” that they have a print disability, which could lead to abuse and even fraud.
The plaintiffs had hoped that absentee voters with disabilities would also be able to submit their completed ballots by email, but Judge Mitchell categorically ruled that out: “This order should not be interpreted as permitting the return of completed absentee ballots electronically,” he wrote. These voters, like all other absentee voters in the state, must therefore mail in their completed ballots.
Some people are cautiously welcoming the decision, including Disability Rights Wisconsin public policy manager. Lisa Hassenstab She called it a “good first step,” but argued there’s still a lot of work to be done. “The ultimate goal is to make the entire process of receiving and returning the ballot truly accessible to voters with print disabilities,” she said.
But many people, including state leaders from both parties, are concerned about the potential consequences of the ruling. Appeal documentsSeveral Republicans He suggested Mitchell’s ruling “will cause confusion.”[] The changes to the state’s current election procedures come just months before the November 2024 general election.”
Even people working for Attorney General Josh Kaul, the Democrat who recently prosecuted several of Trump’s associates in connection with the 2020 election, expressed concerns. Carla Keckhaver She argued that implementing the policy now, with the presidential election just months away, would cause confusion for both voters and election officials, and noted that many of the state’s 1,800 clerks don’t use official government email addresses, which are generally more secure.
Finally, she asserted that facilities for persons with disabilities are available in person at polling stations and that those entrusted with the task of assisting persons with disabilities to vote must not divulge their vote under threat of criminal penalties.
“The plaintiffs will not be deprived of their right to vote,” Keckhaver argued. “They will still be able to vote.”
Some have noted that Judge Mitchell has a long history of involvement with far-left politics, and nearly a decade before he became a judge, he spoke out against prosecuting shoplifters who targeted “big box stores” that offered better insurance.
“I don’t think people should be prosecuted for stealing from Walmart.” Mitchell“I don’t think police should take aggressive action against Target or other insured big box retailers because of people who steal from them,” the lawyer and pastor said at the time.
More recently, Mitchell said,LGBTQ“Community and Planned ParenthoodIn February 2023,Reproductive Justice“That’s one of three reasons why he ran for a vacant seat on the state Supreme Court and ultimately lost.”
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