A split Wisconsin Supreme Court ruled unmanned drop boxes are illegal and voters must deliver their absentee ballots by mail or in-person to their clerks.
The 4-3 ruling found the Wisconsin Elections Commission gave inappropriate advice to local clerks that they could use the drop boxes as the COVID-19 pandemic swept across Wisconsin and the nation.
“WEC’s staff may have been trying to make voting as easy as possible during the pandemic, but whatever their motivations, WEC must follow Wisconsin statutes. Good intentions never override the law,” Justice Rebecca Bradley wrote for the majority.
Bradley was joined in the majority by fellow conservatives Brian Hagedorn, Pat Roggensack and Annette Ziegler.
Writing for the minority, Justice Ann Walsh Bradley wrote drop boxes are a “simple and perfectly legal solution to making voting easier, particularly in the midst of a global pandemic.” She lamented the ruling wasn’t a surprise from the court.
“It has seemingly taken the opportunity to make it harder to vote or to inject confusion into the process whenever it has been presented with the opportunity,” Bradley wrote.
She was joined by fellow liberals Rebecca Dallet and Jill Karofsky.
Read the decision here.
