GOP efforts to oust Wisconsin election chief blocked by state Supreme Court
1 month, 2 weeks ago

GOP efforts to oust Wisconsin election chief blocked by state Supreme Court

Raw Story  

This article was originally published by Votebeat, a nonprofit news organization covering local election administration and voting access. The Wisconsin Supreme Court unanimously ruled Friday that the state’s chief election official, Meagan Wolfe, can stay in her job even though her term has expired, heading off a yearslong effort by some Republicans to oust her. Wolfe’s four-year term expired in July 2023, and the Republican-led state Senate appeared poised to reject her confirmation if the Wisconsin Elections Commission had voted to reappoint her. Republicans asked the Wisconsin Supreme Court to require the commission to appoint an administrator, a move that could have led to Wolfe’s ouster. “WEC does not have a duty to appoint a new administrator to replace Wolfe simply because her term has ended,” conservative Wisconsin Supreme Court Chief Justice Annette Ziegler said.

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History of this topic

Wisconsin Supreme Court says swing state’s embattled elections chief can remain in post
Trending News
1 month, 2 weeks ago

Wisconsin Supreme Court says swing state’s embattled elections chief can remain in post

Associated Press  

MADISON, Wis. — A unanimous Wisconsin Supreme Court ruled Friday that the swing state’s nonpartisan top elections official, who has been targeted for removal by Republican lawmakers over the 2020 presidential election, can remain in her post despite not being reappointed and confirmed by the state Senate. Republicans who control the state Senate tried to fire Wisconsin Elections Commission Administrator …

Wisconsin election chair certifies Trump’s victory in back-to-the-routine teleconference
3 months, 3 weeks ago

Wisconsin election chair certifies Trump’s victory in back-to-the-routine teleconference

Associated Press  

MADISON, Wis. — Wisconsin’s election commission leader quietly certified Donald Trump ’s victory on Friday, moving past the chaos that surrounded the 2020 election results in the battleground state. Commission Chair Ann Jacobs certified results that show Trump won the state with 1,697,626 votes compared to Democrat Kamala Harris’ 1,668,229 votes during a morning Zoom teleconference that lasted six minutes. …

Wisconsin Supreme Court considers case affecting future of state’s elections leader
4 months ago

Wisconsin Supreme Court considers case affecting future of state’s elections leader

Associated Press  

MADISON, Wis. — The Wisconsin Supreme Court grappled Monday with a case affecting whether the swing state’s nonpartisan top elections official, who has been targeted by Republican lawmakers over the 2020 presidential election, can remain in her post despite not being reappointed and confirmed by the state Senate. Republicans who control the state Senate tried to fire Wisconsin Elections Commission …

Bipartisan Wisconsin Elections Commission unanimously chooses Democrat as chair for 2 years
9 months, 1 week ago

Bipartisan Wisconsin Elections Commission unanimously chooses Democrat as chair for 2 years

Associated Press  

MADISON, Wis. — The same Democrat who led the Wisconsin Elections Commission during the contested 2020 presidential election will be back in the helm in the swing state this year after being unanimously elected Monday by the bipartisan panel. The unanimous vote included one from a Republican commissioner who attempted to cast Wisconsin’s electoral votes for Donald Trump in 2020 …

Liberal Wisconsin Supreme Court justice says she won’t run again, setting up fight for control
11 months, 1 week ago

Liberal Wisconsin Supreme Court justice says she won’t run again, setting up fight for control

Associated Press  

MADISON, Wis. — The longest-serving current Wisconsin Supreme Court justice and member of its liberal majority announced Thursday that she will not seek another term, setting up a high-stakes fight for control of the battleground state’s highest court. At least two current liberal judges — Dane County Circuit Judge Susan Crawford and state Appeals Court Judge Chris Taylor — are …

Control of Wisconsin Supreme Court will be up for grabs after liberal justice's surprise retirement
11 months, 1 week ago

Control of Wisconsin Supreme Court will be up for grabs after liberal justice's surprise retirement

Salon  

One year after a closely-watched election tipped the Wisconsin Supreme Court towards a 4-3 liberal majority, the impending retirement of a liberal justice, Ann Walsh Bradley, is teeing off another battle for control of the state's highest court. Conservatives long held the reins of legislative and judicial power in Wisconsin until the most expensive state Supreme Court campaign in U.S. …

Wisconsin’s embattled elections leader is legally holding the position, judge rules
1 year, 2 months ago

Wisconsin’s embattled elections leader is legally holding the position, judge rules

Associated Press  

MADISON, Wis. — A Wisconsin judge ruled Friday that the state’s top elections official is legally holding her position and that the commission that appoints her is under no obligation to name a new leader, handing yet another defeat to Republicans who have tried to oust her. “I agree with WEC that the public expects stability in its elections system …

Wisconsin GOP leader downplays pressure to impeach state election administrator
1 year, 4 months ago

Wisconsin GOP leader downplays pressure to impeach state election administrator

Associated Press  

MADISON, Wis. — Wisconsin’s Republican Assembly leader on Tuesday downplayed pressure he’s receiving from former President Donald Trump and fellow GOP lawmakers to impeach the state’s nonpartisan elections administrator, saying such a vote is “unlikely” to happen. Some Republicans have been trying to oust state elections administrator Meagan Wolfe, who was in her position during the 2020 election narrowly lost …

Wisconsin judge rules that GOP-controlled Senate’s vote to fire top elections official had no effect
1 year, 4 months ago

Wisconsin judge rules that GOP-controlled Senate’s vote to fire top elections official had no effect

Associated Press  

MADISON, Wis. — A vote by the Republican-controlled Wisconsin Senate last month to fire the state’s nonpartisan top elections official had no legal effect, and lawmakers are barred from ousting her while a lawsuit plays out, a Dane County judge ruled on Friday. Administrator Meagan Wolfe will continue serving as head of the Wisconsin Elections Commission pending a decision on …

Wisconsin Republicans admit vote to fire elections chief had no legal effect
1 year, 5 months ago

Wisconsin Republicans admit vote to fire elections chief had no legal effect

Associated Press  

MADISON, Wis. — Republican Wisconsin lawmakers working to oust the state’s nonpartisan top elections official have admitted that a state Senate vote to fire her last month has no legal effect. In a change of course from recent calls to impeach Wisconsin Elections Commission Administrator Meagan Wolfe, leaders of the GOP-controlled Legislature said in court documents filed Friday that the …

Republican leader of Wisconsin Assembly says he won’t move to impeach state’s top elections official
1 year, 5 months ago

Republican leader of Wisconsin Assembly says he won’t move to impeach state’s top elections official

Associated Press  

MADISON, Wis. — The Republican leader of the Wisconsin Assembly said Thursday that he will not pursue impeachment for the presidential battleground state’s nonpartisan top elections official, despite calls from the Republican president of the state Senate to do so. Assembly Speaker Robin Vos told a WKOW-TV reporter that he will wait until a judge has determined whether the Republican-controlled …

Top Wisconsin Senate Republican calls on Assembly to impeach state’s top elections official
1 year, 5 months ago

Top Wisconsin Senate Republican calls on Assembly to impeach state’s top elections official

Associated Press  

MADISON, Wis. — The Republican president of the Wisconsin Senate on Wednesday called on the Assembly to impeach the presidential battleground state’s nonpartisan top elections official, who has remained in office while Democrats fight in court against a Senate vote to fire her. Wisconsin Elections Commission Administrator Meagan Wolfe’s actions “could rise to the level of corrupt conduct in office,” …

Wisconsin Republicans fire state’s top election official following conspiracy-filled hearing
1 year, 6 months ago

Wisconsin Republicans fire state’s top election official following conspiracy-filled hearing

The Independent  

Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington email Get our free Inside Washington email SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Days after a conspiracy theory-filled committee hearing and years of …

Senate committee recommends firing Wisconsin’s top elections official in process Democrats dispute
1 year, 6 months ago

Senate committee recommends firing Wisconsin’s top elections official in process Democrats dispute

Associated Press  

MADISON, Wis. — A Republican-controlled committee on Monday recommended firing Wisconsin’s top elections official rather than reappointing her, clearing the way for a vote by the full GOP-led state Senate as soon as Thursday. The Senate elections committee voted 3-1 along party lines, with one Democrat abstaining, against confirming nonpartisan Wisconsin Elections Commission Administrator Meagan Wolfe for a second term. …

Wisconsin’s new liberal Supreme Court justice hasn’t heard a case but Republicans may impeach
1 year, 6 months ago

Wisconsin’s new liberal Supreme Court justice hasn’t heard a case but Republicans may impeach

Associated Press  

MADISON, Wis. — Even before the newly elected justice who gave liberals a one-seat majority on the Wisconsin Supreme Court has heard a case, Republican lawmakers are talking about taking the unprecedented step of impeaching and removing her from office. It’s a legitimate concern, as Democratic-friendly groups brought two lawsuits in the first week of newly elected Justice Janet Protasiewicz’s …

Election deniers rail in Wisconsin as state Senate moves toward firing top election official
1 year, 6 months ago

Election deniers rail in Wisconsin as state Senate moves toward firing top election official

Associated Press  

MADISON, Wis. — Election skeptics aired their grievances against Wisconsin’s top elections official Tuesday at a hearing Democrats and the Legislature’s nonpartisan attorneys said should never have been held. Nevertheless, the opportunity to testify against Wolfe’s reappointment drew some of the most prominent members of the state’s thriving election conspiracy movement, including Michael Gableman, the former state Supreme Court justice …

Wisconsin elections head won’t testify at reappointment hearing that state AG says is improper
1 year, 6 months ago

Wisconsin elections head won’t testify at reappointment hearing that state AG says is improper

Associated Press  

MADISON, Wis. — Wisconsin’s top elections official said she will not testify next week at a Senate committee hearing on her reappointment, leaning on a letter from the state attorney general that says lawmakers have no authority to force a vote on firing her. Republicans who control the Senate have vowed to oust Wisconsin Elections Commission Administrator Meagan Wolfe before …

Commission won’t tell Wisconsin’s top elections official whether to appear at reappointment hearing
1 year, 7 months ago

Commission won’t tell Wisconsin’s top elections official whether to appear at reappointment hearing

Associated Press  

MADISON, Wis. — The Wisconsin Elections Commission declined to vote Wednesday on whether the state’s top elections official should appear before a state Senate hearing on her reappointment as a fight continues over who will lead elections in the critical battleground state ahead of the 2024 presidential race. Without clear instructions from commissioners, it is up to Meagan Wolfe, the …

Wisconsin Supreme Court chief justice accuses liberals of ‘raw exercise of overreaching power’
1 year, 7 months ago

Wisconsin Supreme Court chief justice accuses liberals of ‘raw exercise of overreaching power’

LA Times  

The conservative chief justice of the Wisconsin Supreme Court accused her liberal colleagues of a “raw exercise of overreaching power” after they flexed their new majority Wednesday and fired the director of the state’s court system. Politics Liberal wins Wisconsin Supreme Court seat ahead of abortion ruling A Democratic-backed Milwaukee judge has won the Wisconsin Supreme Court race, ensuring liberals …

Wisconsin’s top elections official met with FBI in 2020 election probe focusing on Trump
1 year, 8 months ago

Wisconsin’s top elections official met with FBI in 2020 election probe focusing on Trump

Associated Press  

MADISON, Wis. — Wisconsin’s top elections administrator on Tuesday became the latest official in a battleground state to say they have been interviewed by federal investigators as part of the special counsel’s probe into the 2020 election. Election leaders in Wisconsin’s two largest cities of Milwaukee and Madison have also spoken with investigators as part of the Justice Department’s probe …

Reappointment vote ends in partisan deadlock for battleground Wisconsin’s top elections official
1 year, 8 months ago

Reappointment vote ends in partisan deadlock for battleground Wisconsin’s top elections official

Associated Press  

MADISON, Wis. — A vote on the future of Wisconsin’s top elections official ended in partisan deadlock Tuesday amid Republican calls for the nonpartisan administrator of the statewide elections commission to resign over how she ran the 2020 presidential contest. “I have a very clear intent here, and that is to make sure that our commission, our agency, our local …

Top Wisconsin election official facing replacement calls for stability, defends record
1 year, 9 months ago

Top Wisconsin election official facing replacement calls for stability, defends record

Associated Press  

MADISON, Wis. — Wisconsin’s top elections official, who has faced GOP criticism for how she ran the battleground state’s last presidential election, pushed Wednesday for officials to vote to keep her for another term or pick a successor who will support stability. “While I would ultimately support the Commission’s decision to go in the direction of appointing someone new, there …

Wisconsin’s top elections official for 2024 uncertain as incumbent’s term nears end
1 year, 9 months ago

Wisconsin’s top elections official for 2024 uncertain as incumbent’s term nears end

Associated Press  

MADISON, Wis. — Who will oversee the 2024 presidential election in the critical battleground state of Wisconsin remains clouded with uncertainty just weeks before the state’s nonpartisan top elections official reaches the end of her term. And that’s if Meagan Wolfe, administrator of the Wisconsin Elections Commission and one of the most respected election leaders in the nation, even wants …

Vos withdraws subpoenas, ending Wisconsin election inquiry
2 years, 6 months ago

Vos withdraws subpoenas, ending Wisconsin election inquiry

Associated Press  

MADISON, Wis. — Wisconsin’s Republican Assembly leader on Friday withdrew subpoenas submitted as part of a GOP-led investigation into the 2020 election, marking the end of a 14-month endeavor that yielded no evidence of election fraud. Speaker Robin Vos withdrew subpoenas that Michael Gableman, the former Wisconsin Supreme Court justice he hired to look into the results of the 2020 …

Wisconsin GOP eyeing shift in control of election oversight
2 years, 10 months ago

Wisconsin GOP eyeing shift in control of election oversight

Associated Press  

MADISON, Wis. — Doug La Follette is adjusting to a new status in Wisconsin politics: relevance. “Let’s say Mr. X in the future calls the secretary of state in Wisconsin and says ‘I just need 5,000 votes.’ I would hang up on them,” La Follette said. “A Republican of a certain persuasion might not hang up on them.” All four …

'Crazy conspiracy theory': Wisconsin elections chief pans effort to 'decertify' the election
3 years ago

'Crazy conspiracy theory': Wisconsin elections chief pans effort to 'decertify' the election

Raw Story  

Allies of Donald Trump on Tuesday continued their efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election. "The former state Supreme Court justice leading the GOP-ordered review into the 2020 election on Tuesday said the state Legislature "ought to take a very hard look" at decertifying the state's presidential election," the Wisconsin State Journalreported. "Gableman released a new 136-page 'interim report' from …

Bipartisan Wisconsin business coalition backs elections head
3 years, 1 month ago

Bipartisan Wisconsin business coalition backs elections head

Associated Press  

MADISON, Wis. — A bipartisan group of prominent Wisconsin business leaders is voicing support for the state’s embattled elections administrator, her staff and local election officials, issuing a letter Monday backing Meagan Wolfe even as Republicans have called for her resignation and pursued investigations into how the 2020 election was run. The Wisconsin Business Leaders for Democracy Coalition, formed last …

GOP targets Wisconsin elections system, nonpartisan director
3 years, 3 months ago

GOP targets Wisconsin elections system, nonpartisan director

Associated Press  

MADISON, Wis. — Wisconsin Republicans are working to discredit the bipartisan system they created to run elections in the state after President Joe Biden narrowly won last year’s presidential race, making the political battleground the latest front in the national push by the GOP to exert more control over elections. Wednesday will bring a flurry of election-related developments in the …

Wisconsin elections chief rebuffs GOP calls for resignation
3 years, 4 months ago

Wisconsin elections chief rebuffs GOP calls for resignation

Associated Press  

Madison, Wis. — The head of Wisconsin’s elections commission on Monday rejected a call for her resignation from the Republican Assembly Speaker and said her critics were engaging in political attacks. Wisconsin Elections Commission administrator Meagan Wolfe called recent criticism of her handling of the 2020 election “partisan politics at its worst” after Republican Assembly Speaker Robin Vos called for …

Commission picks Wolfe as interim elections chief
7 years ago

Commission picks Wolfe as interim elections chief

Associated Press  

MADISON, Wis. — The Wisconsin Elections Commission picked a new administrator Friday after incumbent Michael Haas stepped aside following a bitter squabble with Senate Republicans. The commission voted unanimously to promote Assistant Administrator Meagan Wolfe to the lead position on an interim basis pending Senate confirmation. She will take over for Haas, who said this week that he would take …

Wisconsin Supreme Court Justice Prosser announces retirement
8 years, 10 months ago

Wisconsin Supreme Court Justice Prosser announces retirement

Associated Press  

MADISON, Wis. — Wisconsin Supreme Court Justice David Prosser announced Wednesday that he plans to retire this summer, ending nearly 18 years on the court marked by a rare physical altercation with a rival justice. Scott Walker he said “the time has come to step down, pass the torch, and begin a new chapter in my life.” Prosser didn’t immediately …

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