Statement of Governor Doyle on Election Problems in Shawano County

Statement of Governor Doyle on Election Problems in Shawano County

Urges Legislature to "Get Moving" on Comprehensive Election Reform Package

"Today's report by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel that a bureaucratic mistake in the Town of Herman caused President Bush to receive an extra 100 votes is another example of why our election process needs to be cleaned up.

"As I have said from the beginning, the biggest threats to our elections don't come from voters trying to cheat, but from bureaucratic mistakes. Today's report shows that these mistakes don't just happen in urban areas - they can and do happen anywhere.

"It is time for the Legislature to get moving on the comprehensive election reform package I proposed two and a half months ago. My reform package will directly address problems like what happened in Shawano County. It includes a requirement for a post-election review process that would force election officials to automatically double check their own work after every election, instead of waiting for outside groups or the media to bring election flaws to their attention.

"In addition, my plan would improve training for poll workers, implement uniform voter registration standards, strengthen enforcement to prevent felons from voting, remove financial incentives for voter drives to submit fraudulent registrations, call for a 30 minute maximum wait time for voting, and launch a sweeping reform of the redistricting process.

"In the coming days and weeks, we will see if the leadership in the Legislature is serious about reforming our elections, or merely scoring political points. I urge them to move forward on my Election Reform package without delay."

A summary of the Governor's Election Reform Package is attached:

GOVERNOR DOYLE'S ELECTION REFORM PACKAGE:

Early Voting

To help ease Election Day pressures, the Governor called for Wisconsin to join the 23 other states that already allow for early voting. Municipalities will be allowed to start counting ballots before Election Day; however, no election results would be released until after the polls close.

The early voting period will mirror the timeline for absentee voting in Wisconsin, but early voting will also be allowed to take place on weekends.

While early voting will be available at municipal clerks' offices, the Governor's early voting proposal will also allow municipalities to establish satellite early voting locations at places such as grocery stores, shopping malls, libraries, community centers, and senior centers. Voters may also cast their ballot by mail.

Mandatory Training For All Poll Workers

Currently in Wisconsin, only chief elections inspectors are required to receive training. The Governor's proposal will require that all poll workers receive a certain level of training, to ensure consistent administration of elections across the state. The State Elections Board will be responsible for administering and determining the content of the course, offered in person, on-line, and by videotape.

Expanded Poll Worker Recruitment

The Governor will launch a variety of initiatives to ensure a larger polling workforce to meet statewide needs. In particular, the Governor will encourage volunteerism on Election Day, calling on private companies to allow employees who work as poll workers to take Election Day off without losing pay.

Additionally, the Governor will be launching an extensive outreach campaign to encourage high school students to volunteer at the polls. Wisconsin law already allows qualified high school students to serve as election officials on Election Day with parental and principal approval.

The Governor will also partner with municipalities and counties to facilitate the sharing of municipal and state workers, particularly in areas that have difficulty meeting the needs of registered voters. Such intergovernmental cooperation will include allowing local and state employees to assist a municipality with pre-Election Day activities, including the processing of registration cards and staffing early voting locations prior to Election Day.

The Governor also offered his support of the removal of residency restrictions on municipal clerks and certain other election administrators to allow them to register voters or fill in as poll workers in municipalities in which they are not residents.

Mandatory Training for Special Registration Deputies

Currently, any qualified elector of the state may apply to the State Elections Board to be appointed as a special registration deputy to assist municipalities in the task of registering voters. However, under current law, there is no prescribed training that a special registration deputy must complete. The Governor called for mandatory training of all special registration deputies to promote the more accurate and complete collection of voter information.

30-Minute Maximum Waiting Time

The Governor proposed a requirement that municipalities develop Election Day plans. The plans, approved by each municipality's common council, will be designed to achieve the goal of no voter waiting longer than thirty minutes before voting and will ensure proper oversight of election processes. Wisconsin would be the first state in the country to enact such a law.

Election Day Plans will be required to include:

• Details on pre-election education on voting eligibility and procedures;

• Strategies to ensure adequate staffing for pre-election activities and on Election Day;

• The assignment of at least one poll worker to monitor lines to make sure that voters are standing in the right lines, and answer questions;

• Measures to ensure the orderly and efficient flow of voters at every polling location;

• Contingency plans to deal with higher than expected voter turnout, including the requirement of having a group of trained, on-call reserve poll workers;

• Tight management controls to ensure accountable and orderly election processes; and

• A specified post-election review process designed to cover compliance with relevant election laws, determine whether the 30-minute standard was met, and provide ideas on how to improve the administration of future elections.

Additional Safeguards to Ensure Ineligible Felons are Not Allowed to Vote

The Governor proposed that the Statewide Voter Registration leave the name of an ineligible felon on the list with a notation that the individual is not eligible to vote, such as an asterisk or the date probation or parole, thereby prompting an election worker to have the voter fill out a challenged ballot instead of sending the person to the same-day registration line. By filling out a challenged ballot, the voter will still be able to vote in case the notation was an administrative error and the voter is not, in fact, an ineligible felon. The challenged ballot may be discounted later if the voter is found to be definitively ineligible.

The Governor's proposal also requires same-day registrants to be cross-referenced post-election against an updated Department of Corrections list to determine whether any ineligible felons voted that were not on the Statewide Voter Registration (due to being a first-time voter) or who were sentenced after the Statewide Voter Registration information was distributed to polling places.

Additionally, a same-day registration voter will have to affirmatively check on his or her registration form that the voter is not a felon currently on probation or parole, before being allowed to vote. Under current law, voters are only required to certify that they "are not disqualified on any ground from voting".

Allow Access to Voter Birth Date Information For Better Oversight

The Governor's proposal would again allow access to voter birth date information to prevent fraud through an open records request, but prohibit the use or sale of such information for commercial purposes or the display of such information on the Internet. Individuals seeking such information will be required to sign an affidavit, stating that the birth date information will not be used for any unauthorized purposes. Access to this information will help determine whether someone voted twice, a felon voted improperly, or someone voted as a dead person.

Prohibit Voter Drives From Paying Workers on a Per Voter or Quota Basis

Currently, many voter drives encourage voters to fill out registration forms and are paid on a per-voter or quota basis, thereby providing a financial incentive to cheat by forging signatures or registering the same voter multiple times. The Governor's proposal will prohibit such practices, and thus would protect the quality of the information being filled out. Workers could still be paid for their time spent registering voters.

Uniform Registration Cards

Currently, registration forms often differ from municipality to municipality, given that the statute only requires the forms to contain certain information. The Governor has proposed a requirement that the State Elections Board create a statewide registration card that must be used by all municipalities in order to ensure the more orderly collection of registration information.

Allow People to Register to Vote at their DMV

To help ease the pre-election workload of municipal clerks, the Governor proposed allowing people to register to vote when applying for or renewing a driver's license.

Uniform Poll Hours

The Governor offered his support for statewide, uniform poll hours. Wisconsin currently allows different poll hours for different classes of municipalities. The proposal would require all polling places to be open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Require Maps to be Displayed at Every Polling Location

A common problem during elections is new voters standing in long lines to vote only to learn upon reaching the front of the line that they were at the wrong polling location. To reduce Election Day confusion, the Governor's proposal requires a map to be posted at all polling places serving multiple wards that would direct voters to their proper polling place.

Merging the State Elections and Ethics Boards

Governor Doyle also offered his support to transform the State Elections and Ethics Board into one agency, more effectively administering and independently enforcing state election and ethics laws.

Redistricting Reform

Despite the nearly even partisan divide in Wisconsin, only two incumbent legislators facing re-election were defeated in the 2004 general election. Of 116 total legislative races in 2004, 57 races had no major party opponent. Forty-nine legislative incumbents faced no opponent whatsoever.

Governor Doyle is committed to restoring competition and true representation to Wisconsin legislative elections, and has therefore called for redistricting reform.
Under the Governor's proposal, non-partisan staff in Wisconsin's Legislative Research Bureau (LRB) will draw state legislative districts using criteria that are proven to create competitive districts. When creating legislative districts, LRB will be prohibited from using incumbents' addresses and previous election results. This factor is often cited as a key to creating independent districts and competitive elections. New district boundaries will coincide with other political boundaries, be contiguous and compact, and meet all of the requirements of the Voting Rights Act.

http://www.wisgov.state.wi.us/journal_media_detail.asp?prid=1166