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| A worker leaves the the Frank P. Zeidler Municipal Building Monday March 30, 2020, in Milwaukee. The city is now allowing drive up early voting for the state's April 7 election. (AP Photo/Morry Gash) |
MADISON, Wis. (AP) —
Wisconsin’s attempt to conduct an election in the midst of a
coronavirus crisis lurched forward Friday, with a Democratic governor
pushing for an all-mail election to replace in-person voting and
Republican leaders refusing to budge.
Just
three days before Tuesday’s spring primary — which features the
Democratic presidential contest plus a high-stakes state Supreme Court
race — a federal judge had extended absentee voting through April 13 but
refused requests to postpone the election.
With
thousands of poll workers quitting, Gov. Tony Evers for the first time
Friday called for an all-mail election, ordering a special session
Saturday and asking the Republican-dominated Legislature to agree.
“I
sit here telling you the time is now for leadership and all the people
that are part of the Senate and Assembly to step to the plate and do
what’s necessary to ensure we have safety in the state and we have an
election we’ll be using mail ballots for,” Evers said, expressing
confidence that the state would “get there” on shifting the election.
Republicans
swiftly made clear their feeling that the election should continue as
planned, and accused Evers of waffling under pressure from liberal
groups.
“It’s so
disappointing that Governor Evers has flip-flopped on the very question
that we have been discussing over the last month,” Assembly Speaker
Robin Vos and Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald said in a joint
statement. “The only bipartisan discussion we’ve had was to ensure the
election would continue safely and to maximize the opportunity to vote
absentee.”
Evers
wanted the session to begin Saturday afternoon and for lawmakers to take
up bills that would allow clerks to mail absentee ballots to voters who
haven’t requested one by May 19 and give voters until May 26 to return
them.
U.S.
District Judge William Conley on Thursday ordered absentee voting
deadlines extended from Election Day on Tuesday to April 13, in effect
extending the election by six days. Republicans appealed, but the 7th
U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals declined late Friday to stay Conley’s
order. The court didn’t explain its decision.
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