Here & Now

Partisan Fight Builds Over Reappointment of Meagan Wolfe

Frederica Freyberg:

Turning to elections, the job security of the administrator of the Wisconsin Elections Commission is uncertain as officials deliberate the fine print of her appointment. Meagan Wolfe’s four-year tenure has weathered the chaos of holding elections amidst a pandemic and numerous court cases alleging voter fraud in the 2020 presidential election but is now in the crosshairs for Senate Republicans who typically approve nominees for the job. In a procedural move this week, the Wisconsin Elections Commission voted on Wolfe’s reappointment. The commission’s three Republicans voted in favor but the three Democrats abstained saying Wolfe doesn’t need to be reappointed; she should maintain her current role until there is a vacancy.

Meagan Wolfe:

Thank you to the commissioners for their kind words and their unanimous support for my job performance today. I was so impressed by the commissioners’ integrity and willing to stand up for the truth about elections, to set the record straight about our process and how the commission works and how our decisions, the commission’s decisions, which I don’t have a vote on, how they’re made, deliberated as part of a public meeting.

Ann Jacobs:

I think the statutory law regarding the WEC is crystal clear, as clear as it can be. I also, I guess, am a battered veteran of I don’t know how many court cases since being appointed in 2016. So someone is going to sue us, they’re going to sue us and we’ll see how that shakes out, but I feel very confident in our interpretation of the law.

Don Mills:

I’m very concerned that now we are leaving the job of the administrator in the hands of a circuit court judge or a court of appeals to the Supreme Court and her position could be in jeopardy on a moment’s notice. And I don’t think that’s good for the staff. I don’t think that’s good for the administration of elections in Wisconsin.