WI: Kaul argues state law does not prohibit absentee ballot drop boxes

Wisconsin Attorney General Josh Kaul joined an ongoing legal battle over the use of absentee ballot drop boxes in the state’s elections, with the state Department of Justice filing a brief that argues state law does not prohibit their use.

The brief, filed with the state Supreme Court Wednesday, sides with Priorities USA, the national non-profit group that brought the lawsuit against the prohibition. Democratic Gov. Tony Evers also joined the lawsuit earlier this month, arguing for the use of drop boxes.

Drop boxes were banned by the state Supreme Court in 2021 when a group of Waukesha County voters challenged their legality. In a mixed opinion, the then-conservative controlled Court ruled that drop boxes were illegal because they weren’t staffed by municipal clerks or their employees. Prior to the ban, drop boxes had been used for years in 66 of the state’s 72 counties. At the time of that decision, there were 570 operating drop boxes across the state.

The lawsuit asking the now-liberal controlled Court to overturn that decision was filed last July.




https://wisconsinexaminer.com/briefs/kaul-argues-state-law-does-not-prohibit-absentee-ballot-drop-boxes/