Election Integrity by Anna Leffel
In Article 1, Section 4, Clause 1 of the United States Constitution, our Founding Fathers ensured that free and fair elections would be the responsibility of each State. It explains, “The Times, Places and Manner of holding elections for Senators and Representatives, shall be prescribed in each State by the Legislators thereof; but Congress may at any time make or alter such Regulations, except as to the Places of choosing Senators.” Judicial precedent has established that states “provide complete code for congressional elections, not only times and places, but in relation to notices, registration, supervision of voting, protection of voters, prevention of fraud and corrupt practices, counting of votes, duties of inspectors, canvassers, and making and publication of election returns.” Courts have also determined that States have authority over recounts, primaries, and sanctions for violating election law. The seizure of election ballots in Fulton County, Georgia, by the FBI, under the direction of President Trump’s administration, based only on allegations posted to social media by conservative commentators, is on the verge of being unconstitutional.
Since these seizures, President Trump has attacked Wisconsin’s elections on Truth Social, claiming there are 3 million more voters registered in the state than there are eligible adults. This is summarily false. According to the Wisconsin Election Commission, there are 3.6 million registered voters, compared to 4.2 million eligible adults. These kinds of claims sow distrust, priming people to reject results and compelling some to abstain from voting altogether. The Election Commission Chair has assured that Wisconsin voters’ private information will not be sent to the federal government unless there is bipartisan Commission support or there is a Congressional vote.
Wisconsin has some of the most closely scrutinized election procedures in the country, requiring registration verification, photo identification, witness signatures for absentee ballots, paper ballot records, public testing of voting equipment, and post-election audits. The Democratic Party of Wisconsin has defended these systems and invested in voter education, election administration, and legal protections for voters.
To support voter education efforts, the Democratic Party of Wisconsin publishes voting guides that explain registration rules, voter ID requirements, absentee ballot procedures, polling place information, and a voter assistance hotline to help constituents access the polls. Wisconsin’s MyVote system allows voters to register, verify information, track absentee ballots, and locate their polling places online. State election officials have upheld that the system includes safeguards to prevent duplicate voting and unauthorized ballot requests.
Transparency and auditing are also central to Wisconsin’s election system. Every ballot cast produces a paper trail, and voting equipment is tested publicly before elections. These digital voting and vote tallying machines are not connected to the internet and cannot be tampered with by outside entities. Election results are reviewed and certified at the municipal, county, and state levels, and post-election audits are routinely conducted. A nonpartisan audit of Wisconsin’s 2020 election concluded that the election was “largely safe and secure” and found no evidence of widespread voter fraud. Additional post-election audits in 2024 similarly found no evidence of machine tampering or systematic counting errors.
The Democratic Party of Wisconsin has often defended local election clerks and nonpartisan election workers against misinformation and political pressure. Clerks from both parties have repeatedly emphasized that Wisconsin elections rely on decentralized administration, bipartisan oversight, and public observation. Observers are permitted to monitor voting machine testing, ballot counting, and canvassing procedures. This transparency is intended to build public trust regardless of political affiliation.
Election integrity is central to a functioning democracy and is fiercely upheld by non-partisan appointees, clerks, poll workers, and other volunteers throughout the state. President Trump and other conservative commentators who critique the 2020 and (preemptively) 2024 elections invoke misinformation, disinformation, and partisan pressure to threaten this democratic institution.
Reposted article to coincide with the Volume One ad running July 7th.
https://www.law.cornell.edu/constitution-conan/article-1/section-4/clause-1/states-and-the-elections-clause#fn2art1
https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/false-claims-of-wisconsin-voter-fraud-rely-on-wrong-numbers
https://www.yahoo.com/news/articles/trump-ups-myth-wisconsin-voter-175902138.html
https://myvote.wi.gov/en-us/Election-Results-Process
https://ballotpedia.org/Election_policy_in_Wisconsin
https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/analysis-opinion/trump-administration-escalates-undermining-elections-fulton-county-fbi