Wisconsin Judge Orders State Elections Commission to Release All Records Related to One Member Acting as 2020 Fake Elector

Monday, August 7th, 2023 -- 12:01 PM

(AP) A Wisconsin judge on Friday ordered the state elections commission to release all records it has related to one of its Republican members and his role as one of 10 people who posed as fake electors in 2020 for former President Donald Trump.

The lawsuit, filed by a union leader represented by the liberal firm Law Forward, sought commission records related to Robert Spindell and comments he made about his role as a fake elector. Spindell is one of three Republican state elections commission members.

Fake electors met in Wisconsin and six other battleground states where Trump was defeated in 2020, attempting to cast ballots for the former president even though he lost. Republicans who participated in Wisconsin said they were trying to preserve Trump’s legal standing in case courts overturned his defeat.

The role of those fake electors, particularly in Wisconsin, was central to the federal indictment against Trump released this week. Trump pleaded not guilty Thursday to trying to overturn the results of his 2020 election loss.

Law Forward filed a complaint with the Wisconsin Elections Commission in 2021 saying the fake electors broke the law. The commission voted unanimously in a closed meeting to reject that complaint, saying the fake electors did not violate any election laws. Spindell did not recuse himself from considering the complaint, even though he voted as one of the fake GOP electors.

The Wisconsin Department of Justice agreed with Trump allies and the fake electors and concluded that Republicans were legitimately trying to preserve his legal standing as courts were deciding if he or Biden won the election.

In May, another state judge ordered the elections commission to reconsider its vote rejecting the complaint. Dane County Circuit Judge Frank Remington ruled that Spindell should not have taken part in the initial discussion and vote because he was targeted in the complaint. The commission has not yet issued a new decision.

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