Wisconsin’s Spring Election: Setting the Tone for Future Elections

All eyes are on Wisconsin today, as voters cast their ballots in several major races, against the backdrop of an executive order about voting, signed by President Trump, that violates the U.S. Constitution and federal law. On the ballot in Wisconsin today is a constitutional amendment that would enshrine a photo ID requirement to vote, and a state supreme court race. The way the election is administered today – protecting voters from threats, harassment, and intimidation as they cast their ballots, counting every vote, and certifying the results on time and without interruption – will help set the tone for elections in the next four years. 

Wisconsin is no stranger to national attention and serves as a bellwether for political trends. Still, the sheer volume of money pouring into the state’s supreme court race — more than $90 million (ABC News), the most ever spent in a judicial race in America — brings sharp focus to the growing influence of billionaires and outside interest groups in Wisconsin politics.

It also signals the Trump Administration’s and its allies’ interest in what happens with election administration in the states. In the last two months we have borne witness to a power grab masquerading as an executive order about voting, and to members of Congress trying to pass the SAVE Act, which would demand Americans show a passport or birth certificate to register to vote – disenfranchising millions of people in the process.  

There’s an interplay between state-level issues like voter ID requirements and the larger national conversation around election reform that shapes the future of our democracy. At both the federal level and in Wisconsin, baseless attacks on voters’ eligibility are well underway. With the SAVE Act looming in Washington, Wisconsin voters face the proposed state constitutional amendment enshrining photo ID as a voting requirement, despite the fact that the state’s voter ID law has been shown to deter voter participation in elections, particularly among Black and low-income voters. None of this is necessary to ensure our elections are safe and accessible.

Beyond massive spending in a state supreme court race from an unelected Trump advisor, there’s a growing concern about federal overreach in state and local election administration. Now, more than ever, we need elections that enable every American to cast a ballot that counts, and that people can trust. The health of our democracy depends on it.