Republican Voter Suppression in Wisconsin Hits Voter Turnout

Madison, Wisconsin — From Republican poll workers, hostile municipal clerks to the Republicans' transformation of "Wisconsin election law," (One Wisconsin Now. v. Thomsen, (p.2)), Republicans worked every angle to obstruct voters and suppress voter turnout.

The years-long voter suppression project continues.

The results are impressive.

Wisconsin traditionally has the highest or near the highest voter turnout.

From Matthew DeFour in the Wisconsin State Journal, (Madison):

Wisconsin’s voter turnout in the November presidential ... declined the second-most from 2012, according to a new report by Nonprofit VOTE and the U.S. Elections Project. 

The ongoing effort by Republicans at the local polling place targets minority and young voters systemically, to be treated with disrespect and hostility. [This Latino writer, working as a poll worker in 2016, pointed out the voter obstruction effort repeatedly since 2011. The response is hostile city of Fitchburg, Wisconsin officials called the police after an August 2016 phone call and contrived a bogus disorderly conduct citation now being adjudicated in municipal court. Resolution is expected in May.]

As a 10-year-plus election inspector, I can tell you this anti-democratic dynamic is widespread and growing.

The anti-democratic phenomenon is the result of the Republican Party changing election laws to usurp control of the voting place, but is difficult to measure in social scientific research such as Nonprofit VOTE and the U.S. Elections Project's.

Most people are not aware there are phone numbers and election officials whom one can contact after witnessing or experiencing voter obstruction.

Illumination of this misconduct depends on poll workers and voters recognizing a hostile polling place is illegal and then speaking up. If you speak up, in accordance with the Wisconsin Elections Commission's advice, you run the risk of a bogus disorderly conduct citation.

This is voting in Wisconsin today.

Illinois House Passes Bipartisan Measure Protecting Voters

Wisconsin blocks the vote, right
as Illinois protects the vote

Illinois Vote to Ban Voter Suppression

As Wisconsin's Scott Walker and the GOP enacted a host of anti-voter measures, Illinois' state House of Representatives overwhelmingly passed a proposed amendment to the Illinois Constitution to ban voter suppression.

The proposed constitutional measure easily passed the House, 109-5 in a roll call vote, (McKinney. Sun Times), needing three-fifths (71 votes) of the vote to pass. "The intent of this constitutional amendment is to provide in Illinois, constitutionally, that voter-suppression laws would not be permitted," said State Rep. Michael Madigan, (D-Chicago).

The amendment "(p)roposes to amend the Suffrage and Elections Article of the Constitution. Provides that no person shall be denied the right to register to vote or to cast a ballot in an election based on race, color, ethnicity, status as a member of a language minority, sex, sexual orientation, or income."

The measure now goes to the Illinois Senate where it is also expected to pass, facing no organized opposition.

In voting rights, Illinois is light years ahead of Wisconsin, where the Republican Party is organized to use every tool at its disposal to obstruct any voter not voting Republican, with only one dissenting GOP legislator, Sen. Dale Schultze (R-Richland Center).

The final step to becoming an Illinois Constitutional amendment is the referendum question facing the people of Illinois on Nov. 4, an expected heavy turn-out affair, featuring the Illinois gubernatorial election.

Meanwhile in Wisconsin which became the latest state to restrict voter access, state Republican Senator Dale Schultz (R-Richland Center) condemned his own Republican party for trying to suppress the vote: "I’m a guy who understands and appreciates what we should be doing in order to make sure every vote counts, every vote is legitimate. But that fact is, it ought to be abundantly clear to everybody in this state that there is no massive voter fraud. The only thing that we do have in this state is we have long lines of people who want to vote. And it seems to me that we should be doing everything we can to make it easier, to help these people get their votes counted." (Sheapeard. Care 2)

Wisconsin could sure use a Constitutional amendment protecting our voters against Republicans such as HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION, CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT 52.

Wisconsin 2014 Election Dates Geared to GOP as GOP Wages War on Voting

Big government is pretty big when it obstructs your right to even vote

College students will get an extra wrench thrown in the 2014 election as Scott Walker looks for that extra advantage that will get Walker the majority of the general election vote.

Add up all the GOP voter suppression efforts, and the GOP hopes this equals a victory in a close race.

Election dates in 2014 are being circulated now by municipal election clerks around the state.

The Fall Election Primary is being held August 12, instead of the traditional September, as most college students will not be moved in on August 12 for the Fall Semester, and therefore cannot register and vote, which will suppress the total college vote in the November 4 general elections. This is courtesy of the GOP which passed a law in 2011 moving the Fall primary date.

Every little bit of voter obstruction helps.

The GOP also passed legislation in 2011 that makes residency requirements 28 days, instead of 10 days.

This year the GOP wants to attack early voting, and force cities, towns and villages to stop all early voting on weekends and nights in an effort to obstruct voter registration and voting drives in Wisconsin cities.

The 2014 election dates are:

February 18 - Spring Election Primary

April 1 - Spring General Election

August 12 - Fall Election Primary

November 4 - Fall General Election

And the crown jewel of the GOP voter obstruction, Photo Voter ID, remains enjoined as violative of the Wisconsin Constitution, and faces a potentially landmark challenge in federal court as well.