A recent review of the VoteRacine.org’s website shows the City of Racine is ignoring the Wisconsin Supreme Court ruling that absentee ballots must be returned by the voter himself or herself.

VoteRacine.org’s “Frequently Asked Questions” contains the following information:


The city of Racine is willfully ignoring state law when it comes to absentee ballots. Under the current law, you can’t return someone else’s ballot. It’s that simple. Racine is encouraging illegal ballot harvesting, pure and simple.
 
A javascript review of the VoteRacine.org/vote-absentee website shows that the website was updated as recently as last week. This shows the Racine could have updated the website to comply with the law, but didn’t. 
 
It's not like Racine didn’t know that ballots couldn’t be returned by someone other than the voter. That issue has been the subject of numerous news stories and guidance documents. This is intentional misinformation from Mayor Cory Mason and Clerk Tara Coolidge.
 
This was a conscious decision by Mayor Mason and Clerk Coolidge to ignore the law, and encourage others to do the same. I’d say that Mayor Mason and Clerk Coolidge should be ashamed of what they’ve done, but I’m sure they aren’t. This was intentional, consequences be damned.
 
Abraham Lincoln once said that laws without enforcement are merely good advice. Just because you don’t like the law doesn’t mean you can ignore it. And elected officials certainly can’t encourage others to break the law. The courts must act to sanction Mason and Coolidge, otherwise others will ignore their rulings also.
 
It is unclear how many people may have turned in ballots illegally for other people, and whether those ballots have been segregated. 
 

 
Tomorrow is our spring general election. Wisconsin's spring elections are non-partisan local elections where races for town boards, school boards, appellate court justices, and local judgeships, among many other things, are decided. To find out exactly what will be on your ballot please visit: myvote.wi.gov.  

Don't worry if you've recently moved, or if you haven't registered to vote yet, you can register right at the polls. And don't forget your voter ID!

In a 7-2 decision, the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) overturned the Wisconsin Supreme Court's ruling approving the legislative maps that were submitted by Governor Evers. To summarize SCOTUS's decision, the WI Supreme Court did not engage in a voting rights analysis of Governor Evers' maps, and incorrectly applied precedent when making its decision.

SCOTUS did not approve any maps, however. Instead, it told the Wisconsin Supreme Court to reconsider its decision approving Evers' maps using its guidance. On Friday, the Wisconsin Supreme Court denied Evers' motion to supplement the record or submit new maps consistent with the SCOTUS ruling. 

Nomination papers for state legislative offices can be circulated beginning April 15th, 2022. It is expected the Wisconsin Supreme Court will issue a final decision on legislative maps prior to that date. 

The Wisconsin Blue Book has been published annually since 1853. It was initially an Assembly pocket manual to easily access information about state government. Over the years, the Blue Book has changed size, color, scope and purpose. Originally, the book was under 100 pages but in 2015 it ballooned to almost 1,000 pages. The 2021-22 edition has 743 pages and includes information about current elected officials, legislative committees, units of state government and more.

I am happy to provide a free Wisconsin Blue Book to residents of the 21st Senate District. If you would like a free copy, please send an email to: Sen.Wanggaard@legis.wi.gov providing your name and mailing address. Please note, the Blue Book can not be sent to P.O. Boxes.

Electronic copies of the 2021-22 Blue Book can be found here: Click.