The lines to enter Wisconsin’s voting stations stretched for blocks as voters, many of whom wore face masks and gloves, waited to enter and cast their votes, standing at least 6 feet apart from each other. Meanwhile, the Speaker of the Wisconsin House, Robin Vos, dressed head to toe in a surgical gown, mask, and gloves, assured voters that it was “incredibly safe to go out” and vote — never mind the state’s shelter-in-place order.
Wisconsin’s primary election on Tuesday was a disaster — and none of it was necessary. Every other state in the country with a primary election scheduled in April postponed it until later this summer, when the coronavirus is hopefully better controlled and social distancing is more manageable. Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers wanted to do the same, but the state’s Republican-controlled legislature would not let him.
The state Democrats’ alternative solution was to extend the deadline for absentee voting, allowing voters to mail in their ballots until June. The Supreme Court rightly rejected this idea — relying on mail-in ballots completely would “fundamentally alter the nature of the election,” according to the Supreme Court’s 5-4 majority, and it would expose the election to vast amounts of voter fraud.
The Supreme Court is right: Study after study has found that voter fraud is much more common among absentee ballots than in-person voting. It’s difficult to forge a signature, impersonate another voter, or buy a vote when you’re physically standing in front of voting officials or in a voting booth. It’s much easier to do all of those things with unlimited time from the privacy of your home.
But that also doesn’t mean Wisconsin’s primary had to take place on Tuesday. The election could have been postponed, which is exactly what should have happened. Forcing voters to leave their homes, travel to the polls, and wait in lines with hundreds of other people (even at a 6-feet distance) endangered the public health and downplayed the seriousness of the crisis we’re facing.
Perhaps the state’s Republicans believed that holding an in-person vote right now would improve their chances of winning the state Supreme Court race that took place yesterday. But something tells me that forcing voters to brave a global pandemic wasn’t the best way to win votes.
