Dane County Asking State Attorney General's Office to Weigh In On Recently Approved Elections Amendment

Friday, May 3rd, 2024 -- 1:01 PM

(Sarah Lehr, Wisconsin Public Radio) Dane County is asking the state’s attorney general to weigh in on the meaning of a newly adopted constitutional amendment, which limits how elections can be run going forward.

According to Sarah Lehr with Wisconsin Public Radio, Wisconsin Attorney General Josh Kaul, a Democrat, plans to release an opinion in response to the request, a spokesperson said Tuesday. His office is accepting public comment on the issue through May 13.

Wisconsin voters approved an amendment on April 2, which says “No individual other than an election official designated by law may perform any task in the conduct of any primary, election, or referendum.”

But, in a letter sent to Kaul’s Department of Justice last week, Dane County Corporation Counsel Carlos Pabellón wrote that the new language leaves room to interpret exactly who counts as an election official and exactly what counts as an election-related task.

For example, local governments often rely on IT professionals to make sure election technology is secure, and local clerks sometimes use police or sheriff’s deputies to transport sealed ballots, the letter notes.

“The question is whether these ‘tasks’ which are vital to the conduct of elections must be performed by an ‘election official’ that is formally appointed by a local clerk and executed an oath,” the letter says.

In an interview with WPR, Democratic Dane County Clerk Scott McDonell said it’s routine for counties to contract with outside vendors to print ballots. “Is that an election official duty?,” McDonell said. “Should the county be in-sourcing that? That’s a good example of the confusion that comes from poorly worded referendums.”

McDonnell says the people overseeing elections across Wisconsin need guidance as soon as possible, since preparations are ongoing for two elections later this year.

The Aug. 13 primary will determine who advances in congressional and state legislative races, and the Nov. 5 general election includes the presidential race in addition to a U.S. Senate seat.

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