The Wisconsin Supreme Court ruled that unmanned absentee ballot drop boxes are illegal in the state and that one person cannot drop off another person's ballot.
The Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty , a conservative law firm, sued – arguing the drop boxes broke a state law that reads: "The envelope shall be mailed by the elector, or delivered in person, to the municipal clerk."
"People want to know their vote counts, and if it’s too close to the election, people are uncomfortable relying on the mail. Drop boxes were actually available until Election Day," said the organization's Barbara Beckert. The dissent added: "There is nothing in the statute that even hints that unstaffed drop boxes are impermissible."
"At the very heart of our democracy is the fundamental right for every eligible voter to be able to cast their ballot—a right that’s far too important to be left to the whims of any politician or political party. We should be working every day to protect that fundamental right by making it as easy as possible for every eligible voter to vote in Wisconsin.
"Today’s ruling also validates my complaint against the City of Racine for allowing ballot harvesting in the April 2022 election. The Wisconsin Elections Commission should immediately rule on my complaint and sanction the city of Racine for breaking election law. The fact is, Mayor Mason and Clerk Coolidge’s rationale for accepting harvested ballots has been expressly rejected by the Wisconsin Supreme Court.
"The Wisconsin Supreme Court’s decision to ban drop boxes and restrict ballot return assistance amounts to yet another senseless attack on our voting rights that will result in even greater disenfranchisement of eligible voters in our state. Drop boxes have proven to be an accessible, secure, and easy way for voters across the country to cast their ballots, and they have been widely used by people of all backgrounds and political affiliations without issue.
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