MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Wisconsin Republican legislative leaders said Tuesday they want to tap the state’s projected record-high $6.6 billion budget surplus to make “transformational” and once-a-generation tax law changes, including eliminating a tax paid by businesses and lowering income taxes for the most wealthy filers. Democratic Gov. Tony Evers has rejected those ideas in the past […]
Author Archives: Scott Bauer / Associated Press
Scott Bauer is the head of the AP bureau in Madison, covering state government and politics.
Posted inGovernment
Republicans court parade crash judge for Wisconsin state bench
Wisconsin Judge Jennifer Dorow drew fan mail and gifts from people who admired her handling of the often disruptive actions of a man on trial for killing six people by driving through a Christmas parade. Now she’s the popular choice of some Republicans to run next year in hopes of sealing a conservative majority on a Wisconsin […]
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Trump-backed Republican kicked out of Wisconsin Assembly caucus
The Republican chair of the Wisconsin Assembly elections committee who was backed by former President Donald Trump, embraced conspiracy theories about the 2020 election and wanted to decertify President Joe Biden’s victory, has been kicked out of the closed GOP caucus because her colleagues don’t trust her.
Posted inGovernment
Can Wisconsin Gov. Evers and GOP Legislature work together?
Can newly reelected Democratic Gov. Tony Evers and the even-more Republican Wisconsin Legislature work better over the next two years than they did the previous four? That’s the $5 billion question.
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Wisconsin judge won’t order sequestering of absentee ballots
A Wisconsin judge refused to order that military absentee ballots be pulled aside and sequestered until it can be verified that they were cast legally, saying that would be a “drastic remedy” that could disenfranchise voters.
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Wisconsin lawmaker sues to sequester military ballots
The Republican chair of the Wisconsin Assembly’s elections committee along with a veterans group and other voters have filed a lawsuit seeking a court order requiring the sequestering of military absentee ballots in the battleground state.
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In final days, Evers asks Wisconsin voters to worry about Michels
Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers learned long ago to lean into his lack of charisma, and he was at it again in an appearance before the Milwaukee Rotary in the final weeks of the race. “I’m not the flashiest guy in the room,” Evers said, pivoting quickly to portray Republican Tim Michels as the opposite — a “radical” and “dangerous” force who could be a threat to democracy.
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Wisconsin ballot spoiling is a no-go after court upholds ban
A Wisconsin appeals court is refusing to block a lower court’s ruling prohibiting voters who already submitted an absentee ballot from voiding it and voting again, a rarely used practice known as ballot spoiling.
Posted inGovernment
Wisconsin judge won’t allow partial addresses on ballots
A Wisconsin judge on Wednesday rejected an attempt backed by liberals to allow absentee ballots containing an incomplete witness address to be counted, saying that would disrupt the status quo and cause confusion with voting underway less than two weeks before Election Day.
Posted inGovernment
Early in-person voting starts in Wisconsin amid lawsuits
In-person early voting began Tuesday in battleground Wisconsin amid ongoing lawsuits affecting which ballots can be counted or tossed, recently ordered bans on drop boxes, and restrictions on who can return ballots.
Posted inGovernment
Wisconsin gov won’t back abortion exceptions if ban remains
Democratic Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers said Tuesday that he wouldn’t sign a bill creating exceptions for rape and incest if it would keep in place the state’s 1849 abortion ban.
Posted inGovernment
Absentee ballot spoiling court ruling put on hold
A Wisconsin appeals court put on hold a lower court’s ruling prohibiting voters from canceling their original absentee ballot and casting a new one, blocking at least temporarily the order sought by a conservative group founded by prominent Republicans.