UPDATE: The Wisconsin Supreme Court blocked an executive order from Democratic Gov. Tony Evers that postponed the election to June 9. It will go on tomorrow.
The U.S. Supreme Court also blocked a ruling that gave people six extra days to submit their absentee ballots.
The Wisconsin Supreme Court ruled 4-2 and said Evers did not have the authority to move the election on his own.
The Supreme Court ruled 5-4 on the absentee ballots:
“Extending the date by which ballots may be cast by voters — not just received by the municipal clerks but cast by voters — for an additional six days after the scheduled election day fundamentally alters the nature of the election,” Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh said in the opinion for the 5-4 majority on Monday.”The district court, acting in view of the dramatically evolving COVID–19 pandemic, entered a preliminary injunction to safeguard the availability of absentee voting in Wisconsin’s spring election,” Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg wrote in a minority opinion, which was joined by all the court’s liberal members.Absentee ballots were set to be accepted until April 13, but now they must be postmarked by April 7.
Previous reporting…
Democratic Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers issued an executive order to suspend in-person voting for elections until June 9 due to the Wuhan coronavirus.
The primary should have taken place tomorrow.
Evers has tried to delay the election on Saturday, but the GOP-controlled legislature said “such a late postponement would cause confusion and leave open municipal positions that will be vacated this month.”
Evers explained he had to issue the executive order for the safety of those in Wisconsin, especially since the White House has issued more safety precautions.
From Politico:
“The virus directs us as to what our decision-making is, not human beings, and clearly I am following the science, as I always have,” Evers told POLITICO in an interview Monday. Evers said he heard from constituents relaying fear for their safety and their kids’ safety, as he tracked updates about the number of deaths and rate of infections in Wisconsin. “Given that, I felt that the governor is the one who has to step up and stand for those people that aren’t having their voices heard.”Evers expects a court challenge from state Republicans, who this weekend rebuffed a late request that the GOP-controlled legislature take action to postpone the election. Evers said if Republicans don’t challenge the order, it will go into effect immediately.
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