Thursday, March 13, 2014

How WI GOP-Approved Ballot Restrictions Will Depress Milwaukee Vote

A lot of the focus on GOP State Senate-approved limitations to in-person absentee voting in Wisconsin statewide has been on its intentional reduction of early voting hours.

Now the City of Milwaukee's election commission has put together data (below) showing how mandating in-person absentee voting to a single site will further disadvantage and jam the voters in a big city like Milwaukee - - but less so in smaller (read: often Republican) communities:

·       Since the 2000 General Election, in-person absentee voting percentages have increased 700% in the City of Milwaukee.  Municipalities across the state and the nation are experiencing comparable interest by voters in “voting early.”  

·       By comparing voting statistics from municipalities across the state, it is evident that Milwaukee and Madison have the lowest percentages of in-person absentee voters.  These percentages demonstrate how the existing limitation of one site per municipality has effected in-person absentee voting for large municipalities.  As a result of this restriction, Milwaukee and Madison have not had the same ability to maximize in-person absentee voting as a mechanism for increasing access to voting and alleviating overcrowding at voting sites at comparable rates to other municipalities. If parity and uniformity are really the goals, Milwaukee should have multiple sites.

·       The limitation of one site per municipality, regardless of size, and the recent further restriction and limitation to the hours of operations places a cap on the capacity of large municipalities like Milwaukee and Madison, to respond to the increased public interest in voting early and the unique needs of residents in urban areas.  

·       As a result of the newly passed restriction to hours, the % of in-person absentee voters in large municipalities like Milwaukee and Madison will  decrease, while the percentages of other smaller municipalities, not effected by the cap on capacity, will  continue to increase.

·       The highest percentage of in-person absentee voters in Milwaukee reside in Aldermanic Districts 6 and 7, two geographic areas of the city largely populated by the people in the lowest socio-economic classes.   The continued restrictions to in-person voting will have the greatest impact on these populations.


HINDI
County
Municipality
Registrants
Total Ballots
In-Person
Turnout %
% In-Person

JACKSON COUNTY
TOWN OF HIXTON
358
328
2
91.62%
0.61%

DANE COUNTY
CITY OF MADISON
182859
150464
18740
82.28%
12.45%

MILWAUKEE COUNTY
CITY OF MILWAUKEE
328202
289232
36349
88.13%
12.57%

WAUKESHA COUNTY
VILLAGE OF CHENEQUA
427
383
74
89.70%
19.32%

KENOSHA COUNTY
CITY OF KENOSHA
52745
45318
10046
85.92%
22.17%

WAUKESHA COUNTY
CITY OF NEW BERLIN
28723
26046
6588
90.68%
25.29%

WAUKESHA COUNTY
TOWN OF OCONOMOWOC
6209
5664
1462
91.22%
25.81%

OZAUKEE COUNTY
CITY OF PORT WASHINGTON
7533
6710
1745
89.07%
26.01%

WAUKESHA COUNTY
CITY OF DELAFIELD
4975
4396
1159
88.36%
26.36%

WINNEBAGO COUNTY
TOWN OF MENASHA
10633
9602
2706
90.30%
28.18%

MILWAUKEE COUNTY
VILLAGE OF WHITEFISH BAY
8115
7811
2695
96.25%
34.50%

4 comments:

clyde said...

When only one site per municipality is permitted for early voting, and the number of days and hours are also drastically reduced - as has occurred in this recently enacted outrageous one-size-fits-all state law, which, for absolutely no good reason, imposes an arbitrary statewide restriction on all municipalities - the difference between (for example) the City of Milwaukee (with a population of over half a million people, and only one early voting site) and the County of Ozaukee (with a total population of less than 100,000 people and more than a dozen early voting locations liberally distributed over a total land area which is about the same size as the City of Milwaukee), in regards to the glaring inequity in early voting opportunity impacting Milwaukee, which has been arrogantly imposed on local municipalities by the current majority party controlling the state legislature, is a blatant denial and violation of both the privileges and immunities of citizens clause and the equal protection of persons under the law clause of the 14th Amendment to the Constitution of the United States of America. To say nothing of violating basic fair play and principles of decency and democracy. It likely violates the Wisconsin Constitution, too. Check it out.

Read "An Election Tale of Two Cities"
http://clydewinter.wordpress.com/2006/08/06/an-election-tale-of-two-cities/


For a nice solution, try:

http://clydewinter.wordpress.com/2014/03/11/lottery-selection-of-public-officials/

Anonymous said...

Milwaukee should open various locations throughout City Hall, like one or several located at every entrance to each building and one on every floor in the atrium, and let anyone try to stop them from early voting.

Anonymous said...

This law is a travesty to the throngs of people who would ordinarily be able to vote. Democracy is about encouraging more people to vote, not creating barriers to prevent people from voting. I do not see how this could pass Constitutional muster, either Statewise or Federally.
This begs for a lawsuit to prevent this from taking place in November.

MAL said...

This law obviously targets who can vote, laying down undue burdens and is thus unconstitutional under the Wisconsin Constitution. And when the legion of unconstitutional laws get challenged in court and temporarily enjoined during trial, we know the GOP will make mischief with https://docs.legis.wisconsin.gov/2013/related/amendments/ab161/ssa1_ab161 - Grothman's vague legislation reading in part, "https://docs.legis.wisconsin.gov/2013/related/amendments/ab161/ssa1_ab161 :"813.025 (3) If a circuit court or a court of appeals enters an injunction, a
9restraining order, or any other final or interlocutory order suspending or restraining
10the enforcement of any statute of this state, the injunction, restraining order, or other
11final or interlocutory order is immediately appealable as a matter of right," passed by the legislature and I'm guessing soon to be signed into law by Walker.