The Sconi

A legal group is suing the Wisconsin Elections Commission (WEC) over its use of the National Mail Voter Registration Form it alleges is out of compliance with state law. 

The lawsuit was filed Sept. 15 in Waukesha County Circuit Court on behalf of registered voter Richard Braun.

Anthony LoCoco, deputy counsel for the Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty (WILL), told The Sconi that the "lawsuit is about ensuring that the Wisconsin Elections Commission complies with the lawful commands of the Wisconsin Legislature.” WILL is representing the plaintiff.

He added that he wasn’t sure if the “illegal form” gives an advantage to one party over another.

WEC’s Election Manual says that the National Mail Voter Registration Application Form is approved for voter registration in Wisconsin. But the form, the lawsuit states, does not contain information requests required by state law.

The allegedly missing questions of electors include: whether the elector has resided within the ward or election district for the number of consecutive days called for in state law; whether the elector has been convicted of a felony and not been pardoned; a space for the ward and aldermanic district where the elector resides; and other elector information required by state law.

The lawsuit asks the court to declare that the use of the form in Wisconsin is illegal, and order WEC to withdraw its approval of the form. The form, it says, adds extra criteria not authorized by statute or rule while failing to include all items mandated by Wisconsin statute.

“Wisconsin law is abundantly clear on the required content of voter registration forms in Wisconsin, yet WEC has somehow approved the use of a form that fails to meet those requirements,” LoCoco said in a statement announcing the lawsuit. “It is a shame that, once again, a voter has to go to court simply to ensure that WEC follows the Legislature’s lawful commands.”

LoCoco said that WILL sent WEC a letter back in July advising the commission that the form was illegal.

WEC has been the subject of other lawsuits, many centering around its policies and procedures employed during the 2020 General Election.

The Thomas More Society (TMS), a public interest law firm, sued WEC over its dismissal of complaints against five Wisconsin cities – Green Bay, Kenosha, Madison, Milwaukee and Racine -- that accepted private funds to help underwrite the cost of administering elections. TMS alleged that the funds, granted by the nonprofit Center for Tech and Civic Life, under the guise of promoting safe elections during the pandemic were in reality funding a get-out-the-vote effort for the Democratic Party.

And WEC was cited in a TMS lawsuit against the same five cities over their use of drop boxes for mail ballots during the 2020 election. WEC had endorsed their use. In July, the Wisconsin Supreme Court ruled that the drop boxes were illegal, and all five cities have since declared they will no longer use them.