In the 2020 presidential election, Wisconsin faced numerous issues tabulating its absentee ballots.
Famously, two flash drives containing vote tabulations were delivered to the Milwaukee County Election Commission the morning after the 2020 election, as reported by the New York Post.
One was forgotten and then added to the count later, fueling intense controversy given that President Joe Biden won the state by a minuscule 21,000 votes.
Thanks to a new temporary change in election law instituted last week, the state may very well run into problems tabulating votes effectively yet again this upcoming election
The new rule, issued via injunction by Dane County Circuit Judge Everett Mitchell, allows certain voters to request electronic ballots and then mail those ballots back in, according to the Post.
The temporary injunction is meant to stay in effect through the election.
Voters with “print disabilities” — those with disabilities rendering them unable to read — will now be among those who can request a ballot as a result of the ruling.
Under Wisconsin law, military members and voters overseas are also allowed to request such ballots.
Even employees of Democrats working in the state government are worried that the law may lead to another chaotic election season in Wisconsin.
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During a June hearing, deputy attorneys in the office of Democrat Attorney General Josh Kaul told Mitchell that the move would create confusion and security risks, according to the Associated Press.
“This court cannot change the rules of the election now … regardless of how hard or easy it is to make those changes,” one assistant attorney said.
Furthermore, according to the Post, the ruling’s timing only a few months ahead of the election leaves local election officials “little time to make the adjustment” to the new rule.
Republicans in the state are fighting back as well.
As reported by the Associated Press, Wisconsin Republicans appealed the ruling Friday, arguing Mitchell was wrong to grant the injunction to plaintiffs who are unlikely to win their case.
The Republicans also argue that the move disrupts the status quo just months before the election.
Judge Mitchell has a history of performing partisan antics.
According to the Post, the judge once argued criminals who steal from big-box stores should not face prosecution.
