Report Finds More Security Needed for Dane County Election Workers

Wednesday, July 27th, 2022 -- 11:01 AM

(AP) The security of election workers and equipment in battleground Wisconsin’s second-largest county isn't adequate in light of the threats that officials and workers are facing in a climate of lies and misinformation about supposed fraud, according to a committee report released Monday.

Local clerks don't have the resources they need to adequately protect workers and to securely store election equipment and materials, the Dane County Election Security Task Force reported.

“I’ve been to all these offices around the county, and access to the staff is quite easy. That needs to change. There needs to be some sort of barrier to protect staff,” Dane County Clerk Scott McDonell said during a news conference.

McDonell is requesting a new facility for elections administration in Dane County and the state's second-largest city, Madison. Local elections officials around the country have reported being subjected to death threats and harassment due to conspiracy theories and misinformation following the 2020 presidential election, which former President Donald Trump has falsely claimed was stolen. 

A 2021 survey of elections officials by the Brennan Center for Justice found that one in three felt unsafe because of their job. President Joe Biden carried Wisconsin by nearly 21,000 votes, a margin upheld by recounts, multiple court rulings, a nonpartisan audit and a conservative review.

A GOP-led investigation by a former Wisconsin Supreme Court justice has also failed to uncover evidence that Trump won. Madison City Clerk Maribeth Witzel-Behl, a member of the task force, said she has received multiple death threats. Other elections officials in the state have also been harassed.

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