Wisconsin lawmaker eyes changing ballot access law after RFK ballot issue
(The Center Square) – A Republican lawmaker in Wisconsin want to avoid another fight to get off the ballot.
State Rep. Scott Krug, R-Nekoosa, who oversees the Assembly’s elections committee said on UpFront over the weekend that he wants to change the state law that keeps people on the ballot, almost no matter what.
“We can’t force people to do things they don’t want to do anymore, even if they wanted to do them earlier,” Krug said.
Krug said there’s no victory in forcing Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on the November ballot even though he’s no longer running for president.
Kennedy has challenged Wisconsin’s ballot access law by arguing it creates two timelines for getting off the ballot. Kennedy says Wisconsin law sets one deadline for Republicans and Democrats to get off the ballot, while it sets another timeline for independent candidates.
A Dane County judge has already rejected Kennedy’s claim, but the Wisconsin Supreme Court was still considering Kennedy’s argument.
Krug said Kennedy has a point to be made.
“I think you saw in the court case they made a pretty strong First Amendment argument that it wasn’t what he wanted to do any more, and we kind of forced him into it,” Krug explained. “So that would be the change, I would propose next session is just saying before that final meeting with WEC, let’s define what qualified means on the ballot.”
It is, however, unlikely Krug and his fellow Republicans will be able to change Wisconsin’s ballot laws. Gov. Tony Evers has vetoed almost every election legislation that lawmakers have sent him over the past four years.
The governor has said he will not sign any new laws that make it more difficult for people to vote.
“I think that’s been the challenge we’ve had the last four years is helping people understand why and how they are working so closely with our clerks, getting information out, having a lot of hearings, a session about ideas and changes we wanted to make,” Krug said during the weekend show. “Not a ton of changes got signed into state law, but I think everybody’s awareness of how our election process works and how their interactions with their clerks can be handled really gives me a lot of confidence going into this last stretch of the election cycle, that it’s safe and secure.”
