As reported by WisPolitics.com, the Assembly approved a series of election bills, including AB 567, which backers said would speed up the process of tallying absentee ballots. While local election officials could begin processing them the day before the election, the votes couldn't be counted until after polls closed on election day. It also would ban the use of central count locations for municipalities, make it a class I felony to work toward getting election result info before polls close, and require clerks to send absentee ballots no later than 21 days before an election for non-military and non-overseas voters. The requirement would be no later than 45 days for military or overseas voters.The measure, which is now headed to the Senate, also adds municipal clerks to the list of those provided whistleblower protections. Rep. Janel Brandtjen (R-Menomonee Falls) opposed AB 567, saying during the floor debate she was concerned that local officials would start counting ballots early despite the ban in the bill and word would leak out. Rep. Clinton Anderson (D-Beloit) called the bill "a good example of bipartisan work."
Assembly Speaker Robin Vos, R-Rochester, says his top priorities this legislative session include amending the Constitution to include a voter ID requirement and allowing clerks to process absentee ballots early.
