Politics

Vos says he will wait on court ruling on the status of Wisconsin's top elections official

Republican Assembly Speaker Robin Vos said lawmakers should wait on taking steps to oust Wisconsin Elections Commission Administrator Meagan Wolfe until the state Supreme Court rules on whether the state Senate had authority to fire her.

Associated Press

October 5, 2023

FacebookRedditGoogle ClassroomEmail
Robin Vos speaks into a microphone while standing in front of a wood legislative dais, with the back of two computer monitors on its surface in the background.

Wisconsin Assembly Speaker Robin Vos speaks during a floor session on Sept. 12, 2023, at the Wisconsin State Capitol in Madison. Vos said Oct. 5 that he will not pursue impeachment for the presidential battleground state's nonpartisan top elections official, despite calls from the Republican president of the state Senate to do so.(Credit: PBS Wisconsin)


AP News

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — The Republican leader of the Wisconsin Assembly said Oct. 5 that he will not pursue impeachment for the presidential battleground state’s nonpartisan top elections official, despite calls from the Republican president of the state Senate to do so.

Assembly Speaker Robin Vos told a WKOW-TV reporter that he will wait until a judge has determined whether the Republican-controlled Senate had the authority to vote in September to fire Wisconsin Elections Commission Administrator Meagan Wolfe before he takes any further steps to oust her.

In the lawsuit he brought after the Senate’s vote, Democratic Attorney General Josh Kaul accused Republicans of attacking the state’s elections. The Senate acted despite not properly receiving a nomination from the bipartisan elections commission, where three Republicans voted to reappoint Wolfe and three Democrats abstained to force a deadlock and thus prevent the nomination from reaching the Senate. Wolfe has remained in office while the legal battle plays out.

Vos said he believes that if the court rules there is a vacancy in office, lawmakers should move to appoint a replacement for Wolfe, rather than impeach her.

“There’s no need to do an impeachment because she’s not there lawfully,” Vos said. “We need to follow the law and see what the actual rulings are from the court.”

Senate President Chris Kapenga, who asked Vos on Oct. 4 to call a vote to impeach Wolfe, is one of many GOP Wisconsin lawmakers who have vowed to oust Wolfe before the 2024 presidential race.

Wolfe has been the subject of conspiracy theories and threats from election skeptics who falsely claim she was part of a plan to rig the 2020 vote in Wisconsin. President Joe Biden defeated Donald Trump in 2020 by nearly 21,000 votes in Wisconsin, an outcome that has withstood two partial recounts, a nonpartisan audit, a conservative law firm’s review, and multiple state and federal lawsuits.


Statement to the Communities We Serve

There is no place for racism in our society. We must work together as a community to ensure we no longer teach, or tolerate it.  Read the full statement.