Wisconsin Supreme Court Blocks Governor From Delaying Primary

Topline: Wisconsin’s Supreme Court blocked Gov. Tony Evers from postponing its primary, hours after the governor had issued an executive order rescheduling the election to June 9; the primary will now proceed on Tuesday as planned.

• Evers, a Democrat, had tried earlier to eliminate in-person voting and move the date of the election in light of the coronavirus outbreak but had faced pushback from the Republican-controlled state legislature.
• “No Wisconsinite should ever have to choose between exercising their constitutional right to vote and being safe, secure, and healthy,” Evers said. 
• The governor’s order was challenged in court by Republicans minutes after Evers issued it.
• The Supreme Court ruled Evers lacks the authority to postpone an election.
• Even Evers himself had said earlier that he does not have the power to move an election but decided to move ahead with the order anyways on Monday.

Chief critic: “The clerks of this state should stand ready to proceed with the election. The governor’s executive order is clearly an unconstitutional overreach,” state Assembly Speaker Robin Vos and Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald, both Republicans, said in a statement announcing the court challenge. “The governor himself has repeatedly acknowledged he can’t move the election. Just last week a federal judge said he did not have the power to cancel the election and Governor Evers doesn’t either. Governor Evers can’t unilaterally run the state.”

Big number: 1.2 million. As of Monday, the state had received requests for more than 1.2 million absentee ballots. CNN reports that as of Monday morning, 550,000 ballots had not been mailed in. 

Vox notes that during a typical spring election in the state, just 250,000 absentee ballots are requested.