A bill to prevent the early closure of polling sites in the state is heading to Governor Evers’ desk.
The bill penned by Eastern Wisconsin State Senator Andre Jacque of De Pere and co-sponsored by Assemblyman Shae Sortwell of Two Rivers would “guard against stealth municipal closures of polling sites, which make it difficult for voters and in some cases prevents them from casting their ballots.”
Jacque says the bill would make it so “municipalities could close no more than 50% of its polling locations unless voted on by its legislative body more than 30 days prior to an election and after a public hearing on the proposed discontinuation.”
The majority of the members-elect of the governing body may also find there could be an emergency, then they could close early but the public must be notified about it as well.
The bill comes on the heels of an incident in spring 2020 where Jacque says, “the city of Green Bay closed all but two polling places at the eleventh hour and with unprecedented long lines and a lack of efficient public notice kept many waiting to vote past midnight, while others were unable to turn in a ballot or could not make it to their proper polling location on time.”
He hopes Governor Evers will sign the bill into law soon.
