Wisconsin voters unhappy with Trump’s efforts to reject their votes

Residents of two counties of Dane and Milwaukee in Wisconsin are increasingly thwarted by attempts by President Donald Trump’s re-election campaign to subtract their ballots from the initial vote count for the 2020 election.

“It’s horrible,” said Barbara Summ, a Dane County voter who submitted a mail-in ballot. Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. “The word is undemocratic.”

The Trump campaign and the Republican Party are seeking to reject the ballots of at least 61,000 early voters in Dane County alone, the publication said. As of November 24, Trump had 20,608 popular votes behind his Democratic competitor, President-elect Joe Biden in the state.

Last Wednesday, the Trump campaign formally called for a recount in both historically Democratic-leaning counties. Trump’s campaign paid $ 3 million, as required by state law, so that election officials can complete the task by December 1.

As of November 24, the unofficial vote tally on the Dane County Clerk’s website shows Biden with 260,157 votes and Trump with 78,789, a difference of 181,368 votes. As of the same date, the unofficial vote tally on the Milwaukee County Clerk’s website shows Biden with 317,251 votes and Trump with 134,355 votes, a difference of 182,896 votes.

To overthrow the state in favor of Trump, the Republican Party would only have to invalidate just under 6% of the two counties’ total votes. Trump’s campaign specifically seeks to reject early votes and postal votes.

Voting officials in both counties accused Trump observers of delaying the count and breaking the rules by interrupting the vote counters with questions and objections to nearly all of the ballots drawn for investigation.

“I don’t think they have the right to it,” Alice Howard, a Black County resident, told the newspaper. “We all have the privilege of voting as we see fit. No one should try to stop us from voting unless they want to go back to the days of slavery. It is our right and we have a choice of how to vote. do it and no one has the right to tell us we can’t. “

By Monday, four days of recount had passed, giving Trump 41 more votes in both counties, according to the Wisconsin State Journal. Election officials from both counties said they did not expect Trump to succeed in overturning enough votes to change the state’s election result.

Republicans filed a lawsuit on Tuesday asking the Wisconsin Supreme Court to block certification of presidential election results, essentially giving the power to appoint presidential voters to the Republican-controlled legislature, the Republicans reported. Associated Press.

Newsweek has contacted the Dane County and Milwaukee clerks’ offices for comment.