The Wisconsin Supreme Court told Election Officials, a Week before the Deadline to Mail Absentee Ballots, that they Can't Mail them until the Court decides whether to Add the Green Party's Presidential Ticket to the Ballot.
The September 17th Deadline for when the 1,850 Municipal Clerks need to Mail-Out Absentee Ballots, to Voters who Requested them, is set in State Law.
The 4-3 Decision by the Wisconsin Supreme Court was Split among partisan Lines, with all Four Conservative Justices agreeing that the Process of must be Paused, while the Three Liberal Justices Dissented. The possible inclusion of Green Party Presidential Candidate, Howie Hawkins, on the General Election Ballot could Tip-the-Scales of a Razor-Thin Contest between Trump (R) and Biden (D).
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Voting during the Pandemic in Wisconsin has already been the subject of Legal Fights. Republicans who insisted on keeping the State's April 7th Primary on schedule Won Two Legal Battles in the Spring, as the State Supreme Court Blocked Democratic Gov. Tony Evers' Bid to Delay it until June and the U.S. Supreme Court Reversed a Lower Court's ruling that gave Voters Six extra days to Return their Ballots by Mail. At least 19 People in Wisconsin who said they Voted In-Person or Worked the Polls tested Positive for the Coronavirus.
About 1 Million Voters in Wisconsin have Requested Ballots, and more than 300,000 of those Ballots have already been Prepared by Local Clerks to go Out to Voters, according to Meagan Wolfe, the Chief Elections Official for Wisconsin.
When asked what would happen if the Justices Order another Candidate to be Added to the Ballots after they have already been Printed, Wolfe said that "it would be incredibly complicated and difficult." Clerks in Smaller Jurisdictions across the State are likely to have already Sent some Ballots to Voters, Wolfe added, though she was unable to say exactly how many were sent.
The State's High Court said the Wisconsin Election Commission must Inform the Court by the End of the Day, on Thursday Sept. 18th, whether Absentee Ballots have been Mailed.
The Court is asking for the Names and Addresses of Everyone who has been Mailed an Absentee Ballot, as well the Date the Ballot was Mailed. On top of that, the Court ordered the Commission to provide it with the Names of Officials who Requested that Ballots be Printed as well as the Date and Time those Requests were Made.
Hawkins was One of Two Candidates that was Denied a Position on the General Election Ballot by the Wisconsin Election Commission. The other is Rapper Kanye West, who has filed a Lawsuit seeking to Overturn that Decision. The Lawsuit is still Pending and could also Impact the Ballot-Printing Process.
Attorney Jeffrey Mandell, who is Representing One of the People who Sued to keep Hawkins Off the Ballot, said that Changing the Ballots at this point would Inject Uncertainty into an already fragile 2020 Election Process. "This could lead to unprecedented chaos," Mandell said.
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