Liberal justices signal overturning absentee ballot drop box ban in Wisconsin

 

MADISON, Wis. (CBS 58) -- Liberal justices who control the state Supreme Court signaled they were open to overturning a ban on absentee ballot drop boxes during oral arguments Monday.

It marked the second time the state's highest court heard arguments over the use of ballot drop boxes after the court's then-conservative majority deemed them illegal in 2022.

"What if we just got it wrong?" said Justice Jill Karofsky, one of the four liberal members on the court who questioned the previous ruling. "What if we made a mistake? Are we now just supposed to perpetuate that mistake in the future?"

The lawsuit, backed by Democrats, seeks to overturn the 2022 ruling that prohibited voters from using drop boxes unless they were placed at a municipal clerk's office.

In a state that often decides elections by a few thousand votes, the decision of the case could impact voter turnout with the upcoming August and November elections just a few months away.

Absentee ballot drop boxes became a popular option for voters during the 2020 election when the pandemic affected many voters' ability to vote in person.

However, when they showed up across the state, often placed outside a local clerk's office or near a fire department, there was nothing in state law clarifying who can and cannot drop their ballot in them. It’s why conservatives sued two years ago asking justices to set policies while also deeming drop boxes illegal.

Liberal Justice Rebecca Dalet argued that if something "is not explicitly in state statute," that doesn't mean it can't be reconsidered.

"There is no way, even though our statute books are quite long, that it could quite possibly ever encompass every tiny little thing that ever existed in any realm, especially in election law when we have a decentralized system of clerks making hundreds of decisions every single day."

While the court has a new liberal majority, control of the chamber will be up for grabs next year after liberal Justice Ann Walsh Bradley announced she won't seek reelection.

Misha Tseytlin, an attorney representing the state Legislature, suggested this issue could be revisited for a third time depending on the makeup of the court in 2025.

"What's going to happen next year or the year after?" said Tseytlin. "This court can take judicial notice that the court's composition will change. I'm going to perhaps move over here and we're going to be talking about drop boxes for the third time on the same arguments."

Before oral arguments, voting rights advocates held regional press conferences across the state expressing their support for reinstating ballot drop boxes.

Martha Siravo, who uses a wheelchair, said not having the option to use drop boxes anymore to cast her ballot has created some challenges.

"I miss them," Siravo said. "It was a way I could vote absentee and get it delivered where it needed to go that same day…now I have to plan around the mail and just hope my ballot gets there on time."

Opponents of drop boxes have claimed they can create an avenue for voter fraud despite no evidence to support that.

Former President Donald Trump has been one of the biggest critics of absentee voting and has repeatedly falsely stated they can lead to "massive fraud." Trump most recently called for "one day voting, by paper ballot" during his visit to Waukesha last month.

Brian Schimming, chairman of the Republican Party of Wisconsin, said overturning the 2022 decision on drop boxes "would be catastrophic for both the separation of powers and the administration of the upcoming August primaries."