Wisconsin: Government Accountability Board says six fake Democrats can run in recall elections | The Oshkosh Northwestern

The state elections board voted unanimously Tuesday to allow six Republicans to run as Democrats to appear on the ballot in Wisconsin’s upcoming recall elections against Gov. Scott Walker and five other Republicans. The decision of the retired judges who sit on the state Government Accountability Board means that all six of the races will have a May 8 primary election and a general recall election on June 5. The GAB agreed with the recommendation of its staff, which was released in a Monday memo, that elections officials did not have the legal authority to keep the six fake Democrats, or “protest candidates,” from the ballot because state law doesn’t require people to prove they belong to any political party before running for office. And GAB staff counsel Mike Haas told the board that Wisconsin elections officials can’t investigate the motives of candidates or their political affiliation. “It’s a bad precedent for us to question the motivations of candidates on the ballot,” said Kevin Kennedy, the GAB director and general counsel.

Wisconsin: Fake Democrats acceptable in recall election, Wisconsin officials say | Herald Times Reporter

Six Republicans running as Democrats in this spring’s recall elections should be allowed a place on the ballot, state election officials said Monday. The state Government Accountability Board is scheduled to vote today on whether to disqualify the candidates. Board attorney Michael Haas wrote in a memo to the board that the candidates should be allowed to run because state law doesn’t require people to prove they belong to any political party before they can run for office. Voters can condone or condemn the candidates at the polls, Haas wrote. “(The candidates’ actions) are products of political calculation and decision-making, and as such they can be rewarded or rejected during the course of the campaigns and the elections,” Haas wrote. Democrats have forced Gov. Scott Walker and five other Republicans into recall elections to punish them for passing a contentious law last year that stripped public workers of their union rights. The GAB has scheduled elections for May 8 and June 5. The state Republican Party openly recruited candidates to run as fake Democrats in every race. The move ensures a Democratic primary will be held in every race May 8. That means no Republican incumbent will have to face a general election that day, when Democrats will be out in force to pick their gubernatorial challenger.

Wisconsin: Supreme Court refuses to take up Wisconsin voter ID cases | JSOnline

The state Supreme Court refused Monday to immediately take up a pair of cases that struck down the state’s new voter ID law, a decision that will likely mean citizens won’t have to show identification when they cast ballots in recall elections in May and June. The court’s terse orders send the cases back to two different appeals panels, though the cases could eventually return to the Supreme Court. The justices issued their orders just three weeks before the May 8 primary for Democrats to pick a candidate to run against Republican Gov. Scott Walker in the June 5 recall election. Dane County Circuit Judge David Flanagan in March blocked the voter ID law for the April presidential primary, saying it likely disenfranchised voters, based on testimony that there are more than 220,000 Wisconsin residents who do not have photo IDs but who are otherwise qualified to vote. A trial in that case began Monday, and Flanagan is expected to decide whether to lift his injunction or block the law permanently after it concludes this week. The case was brought by the Milwaukee branch of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People and the immigrant rights group Voces de la Frontera.

Wisconsin: Supreme Court won’t take voter ID cases, law remains blocked pending Appeals Court action | AP

The Wisconsin Supreme Court on Monday declined to consider the state’s appeals of two rulings blocking Wisconsin’s new voter ID law from taking effect, leaving the issue to lower courts to decide even with recall elections against the governor and five other Republican officials only weeks away.The  court didn’t explain why it wasn’t taking up the state’s appeals in its two single-page orders, which it issued hours after a trial began in one of the cases. The decision means the law, which would require voters to present photo identification at the polls, will remain blocked pending a ruling by one of the appeals courts, which could come before the May 8 primary elections or June 5 general elections. Gov. Scott Walker, the lieutenant governor and three Republican state senators are facing recall elections, and the seat of another GOP senate recall target who recently stepped down is also up for grabs.

Wisconsin: John Doe probe looms over Walker’s recall election | JSOnline

It’s the biggest question hanging over Gov. Scott Walker’s recall election: Will Milwaukee County District Attorney John Chisholm file additional criminal charges as part of his John Doe probe before the June 5 election? For nearly two years, Chisholm’s office has been looking into various activities in Milwaukee County during Walker’s time as county executive. So far, prosecutors have brought charges against three ex-Walker aides, one appointee and a major campaign contributor. Chisholm has sent strong signals that additional charges are in the offing. Walker – who has set up a legal defense fund to pay his two lawyers – said recently that he trusted Chisholm and his staff to decide when and whether to file additional charges. “They’ll run their course one way or the other,” Walker said at a Milwaukee appearance last week. “It truly should be left up to them, and it’s why we’ve been able to cooperate so much.”

Wisconsin: Democrats want faux candidates out of recall election | Wisconsin Rapids Daily Tribune

Democrats asked state elections officials on Thursday to block six Republicans trying to run as Democrats from the ballots for this spring’s recall elections. Democratic Party of Wisconsin attorney Jeremy Levinson filed Thursday’s complaint against the Republican Party of Wisconsin and the six people it recruited to run as fake Democrats, or so-called “protest candidates.” The complaint, filed with the state Government Accountability Board, said the GOP and fake Democrats — Gladys Huber, Isaac Weix, Gary Ellerman, Tamra Varebrook, James Engel and James Buckley — gave false information on documents submitted to elections officials. “The respondents falsified information on these documents, asserting that the six phony primary candidates were ‘affiliated’ with and ‘represent’ the Democratic Party,” the complaint reads.

Wisconsin: The Real Loser Of The Scott Walker Recall? The State Of Wisconsin | Richard L. Hasen/The New Republic

On June 5, Wisconsin voters will head to the polls to decide whether to recall controversial Republican Governor Scott Walker and hislieutenant governor, Rebecca Kleefisch. The current pollingshows a close race. But while it’s not yet clear whether Walker will survive the vote, it’s increasingly safe to declare one winner and one loser from the recall election. The winner is the national Democratic Party, which is already reaping benefits. The loser is the cause of civility in the state of Wisconsin. Democrats may not succeed in removing Walker from office, which would be only the third removal of a U.S. governor ever (following a North Dakota governor in 1921 and California’s Gray Davis in 2003). But the recall vote will likely improve the Democrats’ general election prospects. The June election will be a practice run for get-out-the-vote and other organizing efforts in November. That provides an opportunity to both parties to make sure voters are registered to vote–but it’s Democrats who stand to disproportionately benefit, as they usually have a harder time with voter registration, for various demographic reasons (ie: their voters’ incomes are lower; they move homes more frequently.)

Wisconsin: Marathon Campaign Season Takes Toll | TPM

Think you’re tired of campaign season? Try Wisconsin. The Badger State — which in the last year has been through the upheaval of heavy protest followed by state Senate recall elections – is headed for four major elections over the next seven months: a May Democratic primary for the recall election of Republican Gov. Scott Walker, the recall election itself in June that includes both Gov. Walker and targeted state senate seats, a contested Republican primary for US Senate in August, and the general election in November. Each race will effect the next — control of state government hangs in the balance during the recall elections, and the results could drastically effect the momentum and enthusiasm of activists on both sides of the political divide going into the fall.

Wisconsin: Not what they meant democracy to look like – original supporters of recall law expected it would be used rarely | JSOnline

As armies of union sympathizers paraded around the Wisconsin Capitol in 2011, they often chanted, “This is what democracy looks like!” Yet when Democrats and organized labor undertook an effort to recall Gov. Scott Walker for virtually eliminating most public employees’ ability to collectively bargain, it looked nothing like what democracy had ever looked like or was intended to. In 1926, voters approved a change to the Wisconsin Constitution that provided for the recall of state officials if a petitioner could gather 25% of the signatures cast in the previous gubernatorial election for the relevant district. The change was one of a number of progressive initiatives intended to reduce the effect of money in politics and lessen the influence of special interests. In Wisconsin’s history, only two state elected officials had been successfully recalled before 2011. Nationally, only two governors have ever been recalled from office. Yet in 2012, Wisconsin will be seeing its 15th recall election in the span of one year.

Wisconsin: GOP’s fake Democrats for Wisconsin recall primaries named | madison.com

The state GOP has lined up six fake Democrats to run in upcoming recall elections targeting Gov. Scott Walker and five other Republicans. GOP spokesman Ben Sparks says Gladys Huber will run for governor; Isaac Weix will run for lieutenant governor; and Gary Ellerman, Tamara Varebrook, James Engel and James Buckley will run in four state Senate recalls. The elections are scheduled for May 8 and June 5. If primaries are needed they’ll be held May 8.

Wisconsin: Lt. Governor: Recall message is national | Politico.com

“We’re a harbinger. We’re a canary in a coal mine,” Kleefisch said on Fox News. “Because what happens in Wisconsin has potential to affect every state in this nation whether Wisconsin voters choose to go forward or backward, back to the failed policies of the past that got us in the budget crunch that we fixed in the first place.” Kleefisch argued that the Walker administration had come into office facing a $3.6 billion budget deficit and had made the difficult but necessary decision to fix the budget crisis without raising taxes. “We asked our public sector employees to contribute 12.6 percent toward their health care, about the national average, 5.8 percent toward their pension, which is about half the national average, and we made some changes to collective bargaining, which was [a] financial [issue] to us,” she said.

Wisconsin: Election Officials Prep for Heated Recall Election of Gov. Scott Walker | ABC News

While the national media attention has been focused on the upcoming GOP primary in Wisconsin, there’s another political battle gearing up in the Badger State, and it involves both Democrats and Republicans. On Friday, the Government Accountability Board of Wisconsin is expected to certify the 1 million petitions turned in in January to recall Republican Gov. Scott Walker. With a special gubernatorial election pending, Democrats and Republicans in the state are bracing for a tight race ahead. A special election is tentatively scheduled for June 5, with a Democratic primary to take place four weeks earlier, on May 8. (Those dates will be made official after the recall is certified.)  Three Democrats have declared their candidacies – former Dane County executive Kathleen Falk, Wisconsin secretary of state Doug LaFollette and state senator Kathleen Vinehout.

Wisconsin: Voter ID challenges may be headed to Supreme Court | JSOnline

Two legal challenges to Wisconsin photo identification requirement for voters seem to be headed for the state’s highest court. On Wednesday, two separate appeals courts sent challenges to the law on to the state Supreme Court, which is expected to take up the issue. To do that, a majority of the seven-member court must decide to take up the cases as requested by the appeals court. Earlier this month, two Dane County judges in different cases separately ruled to block the law, which requires citizens to show a government-issued photo ID in order to vote. The Supreme Court will have little time to decide whether to bring back the law before Tuesday’s spring elections. Elections over whether to recall Gov. Scott Walker and four Republican senators could also be ordered as soon as May 8 and June 5. The League of Women Voters of Wisconsin brought one of the two lawsuits, saying that the state went too far in requiring photo ID to vote. “The League of Women Voters is confident that we have a strong case built on clear language in the Wisconsin state constitution.

Wisconsin: Political contributions flow into Wisconsin but less of it is going to presidential candidates | Appleton Post Crescent

Wisconsin’s charged political climate has sparked an unprecedented influx of cash in state politics, but presidential candidates have not reaped the benefits of that fundraising momentum. As the state’s April 3 primary nears, the latest data shows donations from Wisconsin residents in the 2012 presidential race have plunged more than 50 percent from levels four years ago. Through the end of February, Wisconsin donations per capita are the fourth-lowest among the 50 states. The comparisons are imperfect because many primary dates shifted — Wisconsin’s was in mid-February in 2008 — but there’s no denying Wisconsin is a dramatically different state than it was in 2008, said Arnold Shober, a political science professor at Lawrence University in Appleton. “One of the drawbacks of having so much state-level activity is that those races are sucking up … campaign donations here, and I think we’re starting to see some sense of political burnout here in Wisconsin with the increased level of political vitriol,” he said. “That level of animosity has really dampened some of the enthusiasm that often goes into politics, especially in big election years like this one will be.”

Voting Blogs: The War for Wisconsin: As Photo ID Restrictions Hit Constitutional Roadblock, Hard Right Files 29 ‘Ethics Complaints’ | BradBlog

In Wisconsin, two Dane County Circuit Court judges, David Flanagan and Richard Niess both issued injunctions against the state GOP’s polling place photo ID restriction (“Act 23”) — Flanagan’s temporary, Niess’ permanent — after finding that the law was in direct violation of the WI state constitution’s guaranteed right to vote. Immediately after the first of those two injunctions, issued by Judge Flanagan in Milwaukee Branch of the NAACP v. Walker, the WI GOP filed an ethics complaint with the WI Judicial Commission, alleging that the judge had violated the WI Code of Judicial Conduct because he had signed a petition to recall Gov. Scott Walker (R) and failed to disclose that fact before issuing his ruling. However, when Flanagan’s temporary injunction was promptly followed not only by Neiss’ permanent injunction one week later, but by a subsequent refusal by an intermediate WI appellate court to stay the temporary injunction, the hard-right, operating under another right-wing billionaire front group, the Landmark Legal Foundation, filed ethics complaints against 29 WI judges who also signed recall petitions. If you can’t beat ’em, hit ’em with ethics violations complaints…

Wisconsin: GOP Loses Senate Majority, After Recall-Targeted Senator Resigns | TPM

Wisconsin state Sen. Pam Galloway (R) is resigning from the chamber today, citing a family health situation. Galloway was one of the targeted incumbents in upcoming recall elections. This also means that as of now, the Republicans have officially lost their Senate majority, leaving the chamber split 16-16. The recall elections to come will determine who takes the majority. … The recall for her seat, however, is still going ahead as scheduled, though Republicans will have to find a new candidate in what is now the special election for an open seat. The recall rules do provide, however, that her name will not be on the ballot if she resigns this soon.

Wisconsin: Just over 931,000 signatures submitted for Walker recall, Government Accountability Board says | JSOnline

The Government Accountability Board announced Monday that just over 931,000 signatures had been submitted to recall GOP Gov. Scott Walker – well over the 540,208 valid signatures needed, but short of the more than 1 million signatures recall organizers had said they had turned in. It is the first time the board, which runs state elections, has provided any kind of official number of how many signatures against Walker were submitted in January. Nearly 843,000 signatures were submitted against Lt. Gov. Rebecca Kleefisch, the board found. Staff for the board has preliminarily disqualified about 25,500 signatures against Walker and about 29,000 against Kleefisch. Other signatures could be removed as officials continue their review of them.

Wisconsin: Judge rules voter ID law unconstitutional | JSOnline

A Dane County judge struck down the state’s new voter ID law on Monday – the second judge in a week to block the requirement that voters show photo identification at the polls. “A government that undermines the very foundation of its existence – the people’s inherent, pre-constitutional right to vote – imperils its legitimacy as a government by the people, for the people, and especially of the people,” Dane County Circuit Judge Richard Niess wrote. “It sows the seeds for its own demise as a democratic institution. This is precisely what 2011 Wisconsin Act 23 does with its photo ID mandates.” Niess’ eight-page ruling goes further than the one issued by another judge last week because it permanently invalidates the law for violating the state constitution. Tuesday’s order by Dane County Judge David Flanagan halted the law for the April 3 presidential primary and local elections, but not beyond that. Attorney General J.B. Van Hollen promised to quickly appeal the decision.

Wisconsin: Wisconsin recall election to be held June 12, board likely to dismiss challenges | The Badger Herald

The Government Accountability Board requested an additional two weeks to complete the review of the signatures supporting the recall of Gov. Scott Walker, Lt. Gov. Rebecca Kleefisch and four Republican senators, despite also announcing the likelihood of denying the senators’ challenges. A statement from the GAB’s petition review staff said they would not be able to finish the reviewing of the 1.9 million signatures by March 19. They are requesting the deadline be moved to March 30, which would result in the primary for Walker’s recall election on May 15, with the general election slated for June 12. These extensions require a judge’s approval. The statement from the GAB also said the staff recommended the board dismiss challenges from the four Republican senators to the petitions, which, if the board dismisses them, would officially trigger recall elections for the senators.

Wisconsin: Government Accountability Board head backs recall election for 4 GOP senators | WiscNews

The head of the Wisconsin state elections board recommended Friday that recall elections proceed against four Republican state senators, including Scott Fitzgerald, and that they take place on May 15 and June 12. Government Accountability Board director Kevin Kennedy said in his recommendation to the full board that his staff found enough valid signatures to trigger recall elections for the senators but is still examining signatures on petitions seeking the recall of Gov. Scott Walker and Lt. Gov. Rebecca Kleefisch, who are also Republicans. Kennedy said the proposed election dates make the most sense given the remaining verification work and other timing concerns related to the proximity of the state’s April 3 presidential primaries. The full board was to discuss the issue Monday and if it agrees, ask a Dane County judge for more time on Wednesday.

Wisconsin: Wisconsin DOJ plans to appeal controversial voter ID decision | The Badger Herald

Plans to appeal the controversial injunction a Dane County circuit judge placed on the voter ID law have been announced in the days following his decision. Department of Justice spokesperson Dana Brueck said in an email to The Badger Herald that the DOJ plans to appeal Circuit Judge David Flanagan’s decision on grounds the law is constitutional. “Illegal and fraudulent votes dilute and diminish the legitimate votes of qualified electors,” Attorney General J.B. Van Hollen said in a statement. “It is proper and legal for the state to require a person appearing at the polls to prove that he or she is, in fact, the eligible, registered elector whose vote is to be cast.”

Wisconsin: Judge grants temporary injunction barring enforcement of Wisconsin voter ID law in April election | Wisconsin State Journal

A Dane County judge on Tuesday barred the enforcement of the state photo ID law at polling places during the general election on April 3, calling it an “extremely broad and largely needless” impairment of the right to vote. Circuit Judge David Flanagan said the Milwaukee Branch of the NAACP and Voces de la Frontera had demonstrated that their lawsuit against Gov. Scott Walker and the state Government Accountability Board would probably succeed on its merits and had demonstrated the likelihood of irreparable harm if the photo ID law is allowed to stand. (Read the injunction) But hours after news of Flanagan’s ruling broke, conservative activists began circulating a link that showed that Flanagan had signed a petition to recall Walker. (See the recall petition)

Wisconsin: Judge says Wisconsin voter ID lawsuit should proceed | LaCrosse Tribune

The League of Women Voters’ lawsuit challenging the state voter ID law can go ahead after a Dane County judge ruled Monday that the group is a proper party to bring the lawsuit, and that Gov. Scott Walker is a proper defendant.
Circuit Judge Richard Niess wrote in a 15-page decision that League president Melanie Ramey has legal standing to sue Walker and the state Government Accountability Board, turning aside arguments by lawyers for Walker and the GAB that Ramey is not directly affected by the law that requires voters to show one of several types of photo identification when voting. The state Department of Justice, which is representing Walker and the GAB, was still reviewing the decision, spokeswoman Dana Brueck said.

Wisconsin: Government Accountability Board seeks more time to review Walker recall petitions | Journal Sentinel

State election officials say they likely will need extra time to review recall signatures even though Gov. Scott Walker has said he will not challenge the petitions against him – a move that would give Walker more time to raise unlimited sums of money. Meanwhile, Republican legislators groused Wednesday that the Government Accountability Board was not doing a thorough enough analysis of the signatures even as it was asking them for $975,000 to do its work. “It just seems like they are doing the bare minimum but not enough to instill confidence in the system,” said Rep. Robin Vos (R-Rochester), co-chair of the Joint Finance Committee.

Wisconsin: Voter ID law limits ability of volunteers to register voters | Capitol Report

Becoming a U.S. citizen and registering to vote in Wisconsin used to go hand in hand. But thanks to the state’s new voter ID law, that’s no longer the case.
“It was done intentionally,” says Dorothy Sherman, a Milwaukee County resident and Wisconsin League of Women Voters member who helps new citizens register to vote after their naturalization ceremony. “This administration doesn’t want to be helpful, in terms of helping people register to vote. What they’ve actually done is make the process very difficult.”
Tucked inside the state’s controversial voter ID law, which was signed by Republican Gov. Scott Walker last May, is a provision that no longer allows the state’s non-partisan election agency to train and certify what are known as special registration deputies.

Wisconsin: Appeals court vacates ruling on how state elections board must review recall signatures | The Republic

Democrats got a victory Friday when the Wisconsin Court of Appeals overturned a judge’s order for state election officials to be more aggressive in ferreting out fake or duplicate signatures on recall petitions. The order had been aimed at those examining petitions to recall Republican Gov. Scott Walker, who is being targeted in part for pushing last year’s law ending nearly all collective-bargaining rights for most public workers. United Wisconsin, the coalition that spearheaded the recall effort along with the Democratic Party, turned in 1 million signatures last month, almost twice as many as are needed to force a recall election against the governor. The signatures are still being vetted by state workers.

Wisconsin: Recall Spending Could Hit $100 Million | TPM

In the upcoming recall election against Republican Gov. Scott Walker, Wisconsin faces the first ever gubernatorial recall in the state, and only the third gubernatorial recall in the country’s history. Next to the presidential campaign it will likely be the biggest, most expensive race in the country, costing $100 million or more — and that’s just for one state, compared to the whole country. In last year’s state Senate recalls, when six Republicans and three Democratic incumbents were put on the ballot — with control of the 33-seat chamber officially up for grabs — nearly $44 million was spent on those nine races, between the candidates, their political parties, and the various third-party ad groups on both sides. So how much will it be worth everyone’s while, with the whole governorship itself, plus four additional Republican state Senate seats, all on the line?

Wisconsin: Software for recall petition database needs human assistance | JSOnline

In their effort to review 1.9 million recall signatures, state election officials are embarking on a project unlike any they have done before, relying on newly purchased software that can convert handwritten names into entries in six searchable databases. Experts say that the type of software the state is using can produce databases in a short time, but that officials must be ready to address numerous errors because computers sometimes misread handwritten letters. “Handwriting recognition software is not great,” said Daniel Lopresti, a computer science professor at Lehigh University in Pennsylvania. “A lot of the names are going to have errors in them.”

Wisconsin: Recall Elections a Sure Thing, but New ID Law May Block Anti-Walker Vote | Truthout

Wisconsinites’ efforts to protect democracy—in the workplace and through the ballot—are rapidly escalating on two key fronts. The state will soon witness major election and legal battles to combat Walker-supported laws limiting the rights of public workers and restricting voting booth access. Laws passed in 2011 virtually eliminate public-employee bargaining rights and restrict voting to those with approved IDs, which could potentially disenfranchise tens of thousands of state residents. “First you take away workers’ rights, then you change the laws so that it’s hard for them to vote you out of office,” said Scot Ross, director of One Wisconsin Now, a progressive media-focused group.

Wisconsin: Officials Must Verify 1.9 Million Recall Signatures | Bloomberg

Wisconsin election officials will examine more than 1.9 million petition signatures aimed at forcing recalls of Governor Scott Walker, his lieutenant governor and four state senators, all Republicans. The Government Accountability Board, a nonpartisan panel of former judges, for two months will focus on the validity of names turned in yesterday in Madison, the state capital, said Director Kevin Kennedy. The timing of any recall election is unknown, he said, because there are “so many variables” in a verification process that will be webcast and subject to legal challenges. Two sets of eyes will examine every name, he said. “We have no dog in this fight,” Kennedy said yesterday at a news conference in Madison, referring to the board’s neutrality. “We just have a job to do.”