The Sconi

Millions of dollars in grants to local Wisconsin election officials from a group advertising itself as nonpartisan, the Center for Tech and Civic Life (CTCL), increased voter turnout for Joe Biden in the November 2020 presidential elections, according to findings by the Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty (WILL), a conservative law firm.

The WILL study found that “areas of the state that received CTCL grants saw statistically significant increases in turnout for Joe Biden – 41 more votes, on average. CTCL spending did not result in statistically significant increases in turnout for Donald Trump.”

WILL noted that CTCL, which is managed by a group of former Democratic operatives, granted Wisconsin municipalities more than $10 million. Of this $10 million, 86% went to the five largest cities -- Milwaukee, Madison, Green Bay, Kenosha, and Racine -- cities with big advantages in Democratic registration. The money disbursed by the group in Wisconsin and in other battleground states was donated by Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg to the tune of $350 million running up to the fall election.

“This analysis provides convincing evidence that the CTCL grants played a role in increasing turnout for Joe Biden in 2020,” WILL Research Director Will Flanders said in a statement issued with the release of the report. “Wisconsin lawmakers should act to ensure local election administration isn’t captured by private money seeking partisan advantage.”

Senate Bill 207, sponsored by Sen. Duey Stroebel (R-Saukville) that bans local officials from accepting private funds recently made it to the desk of Gov. Tony Evers, a Democrat. But Evers is expected to veto the bill, along with other election-related bills recently approved by the Wisconsin Legislature.

WILL’s findings regarding CTCL are supported by the Capital Research Center (CRC), a Washington, D.C. group that investigates nonprofits suspected of engaging in political activity – a violation of IRS rules for such groups. CRC finds that the CTCL’s grants favored Biden not just in Wisconsin but in other battleground states as well.