From amending the criteria judges can use in setting bail to changing Madison City Council terms, several state and local questions are on the ballot Tuesday.
These Madison-area school districts have referendums on next week's ballot
A hallway at Deerfield High School serves as an overflow storage area. The district has a $49.7 million construction referendum on Tuesday's ballot, in part to address crowded classrooms.
JOHN HART, STATE JOURNAL
Eighty-two school districts in Wisconsin are asking voters to approve referendums next week to help pay for things like staffing and construction, including three in Dane County and more than a dozen in south-central Wisconsin.
The Deerfield School District is the only one in the county asking to borrow money for construction purposes as it faces aging infrastructure and overflowing classrooms, especially at the elementary school, where storage rooms and teachers' lounges have been converted into classrooms.
Cap Times and Simpson Street Free Press moderators host a forum for the candidates at East High School
Deerfield School District business manager Doreen Treuden works in her office, adjacent to the school’s library. If the district's referendum passes next week, the middle and high school will get a new library media center, among other additions and renovations.
A hallway floor at Deerfield High School shows wear. The district's construction referendum would help renovate and modernize classrooms and support spaces, and redo windows, flooring and more.
A maintenance shed used by the Deerfield School District. The district would construct a new maintenance building with its $49.7 million construction referendum if it passes on Tuesday.
Deerfield School District Superintendent Michelle Jensen in a custodial room that once served as a classroom in the 1960s-era portion of the middle and high school. The district hopes to pass a $49.7 million construction referendum next week that will help ease crowding.
JOHN HART, STATE JOURNAL
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Photos: Voters cast ballots throughout Madison
Meryl DiIorio casts his ballot at the Wil-Mar Neighborhood Center in Madison on Tuesday. Voters around the state chose representatives for nonpartisan school and municipal offices.
KAYLA WOLF, STATE JOURNAL
Kim Lawrence places a "future voter" sticker on her son Ethan as she exits the polling place at Yahara Bay Distillery in Madison Tuesday. "He's 4½ months old, so he has a long way to go," Lawrence said.
KAYLA WOLF, STATE JOURNAL
Meryl DiIorio fills out his ballot at the Wil-Mar Neighborhood Center in Madison, Wis., Tuesday, April 5, 2022. KAYLA WOLF, STATE JOURNAL
Kayla Wolf
Judy Hill, left, maneuvers her mother, Reta Harring, down the handicap ramp, followed by Steve Hill, after Harring cast her ballot at the Mallards Duck Blind Clubhouse in Madison on Tuesday. The family was frustrated with the long and bumpy path from the parking lot to the voting booths.
Voters fill out their ballots with a view of the baseball diamond at the Mallards Duck Blind Clubhouse Tuesday.
Daniel Braund fills out his ballot at the Mallards Duck Blind Clubhouse in Madison, Wis., Tuesday, April 5, 2022. KAYLA WOLF, STATE JOURNAL
KAYLA WOLF STATE JOURNAL
Voters exit their polling place located in Hy-Vee on East Washington Avenue in Madison, Wis., Tuesday, April 5, 2022. KAYLA WOLF, STATE JOURNAL
KAYLA WOLF STATE JOURNAL
Stef Bugasch Scopoline casts her ballot at Yahara Bay Distillery in Madison, Wis., Tuesday, April 5, 2022. KAYLA WOLF, STATE JOURNAL
Chief Inspector Dena Sedlmayr, left, and volunteer poll worker Emily Temte reinstall the location banner outside of Gates of Heaven Synagogue in Madison, Wis., Tuesday, April 5, 2022. KAYLA WOLF, STATE JOURNAL
KAYLA WOLF STATE JOURNAL
A voter enters the Wil-Mar Neighborhood Center in Madison to cast a ballot Tuesday. Turnout was light in Tuesday's balloting for local offices.
KAYLA WOLF, STATE JOURNAL
How 1 proposed change to Wisconsin's Constitution became 2 questions on the April ballot
Alongside the Wisconsin Supreme Court election, voters on April 4 will decide whether to approve a measure to give judges more options for keeping people arrested for violent crimes in custody pending trial.
The proposed constitutional change, which passed the Legislature in two consecutive sessions as a single measure, will be presented to voters as two questions because they concern related but separate issues: one involves the conditions under which a person may be released from custody, while the second expands the criteria judges may use in setting cash bail.
Against a more topical opponent, Dan Kelly pins hopes on broad appeal to protecting the Constitution
In campaign stops across the state and in media interviews, conservative Wisconsin Supreme Court candidate Dan Kelly has consistently emphasized his devotion to the state Constitution.
After qualifying for the April 4 election in last month’s primary, Kelly praised voters who “reaffirmed the centrality of the Constitution to the work of the Wisconsin Supreme Court.” In a 10-minute speech before the Wisconsin Counties Association Legislative Conference on Wednesday, he used the word “Constitution” or “constitutional” 14 times.
Outcomes in Wisconsin Supreme Court race, challenge to abortion law seen as inextricably linked
When voters head to the polls in April, they will not only be choosing a Wisconsin Supreme Court justice. They could also effectively decide the outcome in a highly consequential case currently moving through the courts: the challenge to the state’s near-total ban on abortion.
That’s because, unlike possibly ever before, one of the candidates has all but pledged to restore the rights the law currently blocks, while the other — though far less vocal on the issue — has asserted that abortion “involves taking the life of a human being,” the main argument advanced by backers of the 1849 law.
Wisconsin Supreme Court candidates differ on whether party backing requires recusal
Saying she didn’t want to risk appearing unfair, Wisconsin Supreme Court candidate Janet Protasiewicz said Wednesday if elected she would recuse herself from court cases involving the state Democratic Party because of its $2.5 million donation to her campaign.
At the same time, she said she wouldn’t recuse herself from abortion-related cases despite Planned Parenthood planning to spend over $1 million on her behalf. She said the same was true for redistricting cases, though she has called the current legislative maps, which benefit Republicans, “rigged.”
Conservatives call for unity after scrappy Wisconsin Supreme Court primary
Now that Dan Kelly has advanced as the conservative candidate for Wisconsin Supreme Court, GOP leaders are seeking to right their partisan ship after a divisive primary campaign that pitted their two candidates — and many of their high-profile supporters — against one another.
Conservatives are placing an extra emphasis on unifying in their fight against the top vote-getter Tuesday, liberal Milwaukee County Circuit Judge Janet Protasiewicz, after last year’s Republican gubernatorial primary saw similar tussles, which some say contributed to nominee Tim Michels’ November loss to Democratic Gov. Tony Evers.
Dan Kelly wants to keep court meetings closed; Janet Protasiewicz wants them open
Liberal Wisconsin Supreme Court candidate Janet Protasiewicz said she favors the court debating its administrative rules in public, but conservative candidate Daniel Kelly said such a policy promotes grandstanding instead of efficiency.
“Those hearings should be open,” Protasiewicz told the Wisconsin State Journal editorial board on Tuesday. “I’m all about transparency.”
Janet Protasiewicz has massive early spending advantage in Wisconsin Supreme Court race
Janet Protasiewicz has a major early spending lead over Dan Kelly in the Wisconsin Supreme Court race, according to media tracking firm Medium Buying.
By early Monday afternoon, liberals had reserved over $7 million in ads between the primary and April 4 general election to boost Protasiewicz’s Wisconsin Supreme Court bid.
From murder to watching a cockfight: The 88 crimes that could alter your cash bail in Wisconsin
Republicans on Thursday advanced legislation to define what offenses constitute "violent crimes" in preparation for the anticipated passage of a state constitutional amendment that would allow judges to consider defendants' past convictions in setting cash bail.
If passed by the Legislature and signed into law by Democratic Gov. Tony Evers, the measure would clarify that judges can consider dozens of defendants' past "violent crime" convictions when they set cash bail.
The governor's budget proposal is all but certain to receive pushback from legislative Republicans, who have championed the need to implement a flat income tax in Wisconsin.
Wisconsin's latest fiscal outlook projects the state will wrap up the current fiscal year with about half a billion dollars more than previous projections.
Evers will unveil his formal budget request on Feb. 15. From there, the Republican-controlled budget committee will rewrite the document before sending it back to the governor.
ALEXANDER SHUR and MITCHELL SCHMIDT
Wisconsin State Journal
Updated
Evers on Tuesday also unveiled proposals to cut taxes, increase local government funding, spend more than $100 million to deal with PFAS contamination and support child care providers.
The two top options being discussed are adjusting the state's income tax to benefit middle class earners or eliminating the current tax and creating a 3.25% flat tax.
Wisconsin Republicans advance bill to define 'violent crime' in constitutional bail amendment
Republicans on Thursday advanced legislation to define what offenses constitute “violent crimes” in preparation for the anticipated passage of a state constitutional amendment that would allow judges to consider defendants’ past convictions in setting cash bail.
If passed and signed into law by Democratic Gov. Tony Evers, the measure would clarify that judges can consider dozens of defendants’ past “violent crime” convictions, from reckless homicide to intimidating a witness by use of force, when they set cash bail.
The governor's budget proposal is all but certain to receive pushback from legislative Republicans, who have championed the need to implement a flat income tax in Wisconsin.
Wisconsin's latest fiscal outlook projects the state will wrap up the current fiscal year with about half a billion dollars more than previous projections.
Evers will unveil his formal budget request on Feb. 15. From there, the Republican-controlled budget committee will rewrite the document before sending it back to the governor.
ALEXANDER SHUR and MITCHELL SCHMIDT
Wisconsin State Journal
Updated
Evers on Tuesday also unveiled proposals to cut taxes, increase local government funding, spend more than $100 million to deal with PFAS contamination and support child care providers.
The two top options being discussed are adjusting the state's income tax to benefit middle class earners or eliminating the current tax and creating a 3.25% flat tax.
Wisconsinites to have final say on bail question in April after Assembly gives final approval
Along with deciding the ideological balance of the Wisconsin Supreme Court, voters in April will have the final say on a proposed constitutional amendment to modify the state's cash bail system. Voters will also be asked whether some adults should have to seek work to receive benefits from taxpayer-funded programs.
The Republican-controlled Assembly on Thursday gave final approval for both measures to appear on the ballot, two days after they were approved by the Senate. Democratic Gov. Tony Evers cannot veto a proposed constitutional amendment or an advisory referendum like the welfare question.
Senate Republicans approved two referendums Tuesday that are likely to appear before voters on the April 4 ballot: one, an advisory question asking whether adults should have to actively seek work to continue receiving taxpayer-funded benefits, and the other an amendment to the state Constitution changing the basis for how judges set cash bail in the state.
Voting along party lines, the GOP-controlled Senate also rejected a proposal by Democratic Gov. Tony Evers and legislative Democrats to substitute the welfare question with one asking voters if the state’s near-complete abortion ban should be repealed.
Wisconsin Senate approves constitutional amendment to change bail; Assembly to vote on proposal Thursday
The Senate on Tuesday approved a constitutional amendment to toughen the state's bail system by requiring courts to consider the criminal histories of people charged with violent crimes and whether they present a risk to public safety if released.
The measure, which passed 23-9, heads to the Assembly on Thursday. If approved there, it will go before voters April 4, when a Wisconsin Supreme Court race and local races and referendums will also be on the ballot.
You decided a bitter election and now, those people you elected started their terms. Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers on Tuesday, Jan. 3 laid out his vision for his second term.
This story isn't fascinating, except that it was my first one on the job. I've since learned a whole lot and look forward to learning more.
Constitutional amendment to change bail likely headed to Wisconsin voters in April
Hurrying to put the question before voters this spring, the state Senate on Tuesday and the Assembly on Thursday are scheduled to vote on a constitutional amendment that would require courts to factor in defendants’ past charges and public safety risk in setting cash bail amounts for those accused of violent crimes.
Under the state Constitution, judges can’t currently impose cash bail to prevent future crimes, only to ensure defendants appear in court. Judges may, however, add conditions to a person’s bail that seek to address public safety concerns.
