The Wisconsin Senate voted Thursday to remove Wisconsin Elections Commission Administrator Meagan Wolfe, according to The Hill.
The state Senate has a Republican veto proof supermajority, with 22 seats out of 33 controlled by the GOP. The vote came over her alleged conduct during the 2020 presidential election, according to The Hill. Wisconsin’s Democratic Gov. Tony Evers excoriated the move and ordered his Justice Department to represent Wolfe so that she can stay in office, according to the outlet.
“Wisconsin Republicans’ attempt to illegally fire Wisconsin’s elections administrator without cause today shows they are continuing to escalate efforts to sow distrust and disinformation about our elections, denigrate our clerks, poll workers, and election administrators, and undermine basic tenets of our democracy, including the peaceful transfer of power,” he said, The Hill reported.
Republican-controlled Wisconsin Senate votes to fire top elections official https://t.co/KZ9MNWiX5x pic.twitter.com/6hEqgUN2rv
— The Hill (@thehill) September 14, 2023
Democrats argue that the Senate does not have the authority to fire state officials and that Wolfe had already failed to be nominated due to a stalemate back in June, according to The Hill. Three Republicans on the commission voted to nominate her while three Democrats abstained. Republican Senate Majority Leader Devin LeMahieu argued that the 3-0 vote by the commission did forward her nomination. (RELATED: Wisconsin GOP Leader Takes Major Step Toward Impeaching Liberal Supreme Court Justice)
Wolfe’s conduct in connection with the 2020 presidential election has drawn a lot of ire by Republicans. Republicans cite the Gableman Report, a review of the election in the state, which alleges the commission “unlawfully” ordered clerks to violate rules regarding sending special voting deputies to nursing home residents. The Wisconsin Elections Commission published a report they claim debunks the Gableman Report.