At the Capitol in Madison on Tuesday, Democratic Governor Tony Evers vetoed six Republican bills which were crafted to restrict Wisconsin election laws.
“At the end of the day, these bills add unnecessary and damaging hurdles, for Wisconsinites to participate in our democracy,” Evers said.
Among the bills were efforts to cut down on the number of absentee ballot drop boxes and limits on how long people could get help voting in assisted living homes.
“Wisconsin has long been a laboratory of democracy, but in recent years we are used as a Petri dish for Republican plans to undermine that democracy,” said Evers. “Well not anymore, not today, not as long as I’m governor of the great state of Wisconsin.”
Many of the bills would have acted on complaints from former President Trump and his allies in the wake of his loss in 2020.
“The governor is making another momentous mistake with his veto pen. While he claims these bills are ‘anti-democracy,’ his actions speak louder than words. He is satisfied with the status quo and refusing to improve future elections.
“These bills closed loopholes, standardized procedures, established uniformity, guaranteed only the voter can correct their own ballot and protected votes of seniors in long-term care.
“I am very disappointed Governor Evers refuses to do the right thing.”
*SB 212 sought to prohibit local elections clerks from filling in missing information on absentee ballot envelopes.
*SB 210 sought to allow election observers to be no more than 3 feet from tables at which voting activities are occurring. Current law says observers must be between 3 feet and 8 feet away.
*SB 205 sought to overhaul policies for special voting deputies that assist voting in assisted care facilities.
*SB 204 would have revamped procedures for those who claim indefinitely confined status due to age, infirmary or illness. That includes a provision that sought to require those voters to provide a copy of their voter ID with their application if they have one.
*SB 203 would have explicitly authorized the use of drop boxes to collect absentee ballots, but also sought to place various restrictions on their use.
*SB 292 sought to require municipalities that broadcast canvassing proceedings live to record it and retain the recording for 22 months.