Wisconsin's Top Elections Official Receiving Heightened Security

Wednesday, April 17th, 2024 -- 3:00 PM

(Anya van Wagtendonk, Wisconsin Public Radio) Meagan Wolfe, the state’s top elections official, is receiving heightened security, WPR has confirmed.

According to Anya van Wagtendonk with Wisconsin Public Radio, the Wisconsin Elections Commission, the agency at which Wolfe serves as the nonpartisan administrator, would not confirm how long Wolfe has received the extra security. Gov. Tony Evers’ office, which approved the additional security, declined to specify what that security looks like.

“The Wisconsin Elections Commission has had productive conversations about safety and security with state leadership, including the Governor’s Office, which is tasked with approving security measures for state government officials,” WEC spokesperson Riley Vetterkind said in a statement. “Those conversations have resulted in additional security measures being approved for Administrator Wolfe and the WEC when the need arises.”

Elections administrators say the extra security, which was first reported by the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, is unusual, and comes after nearly four years of targeted attacks on election officials across the country, with particular attention focused on swing states whose results tipped the margin of that presidential contest toward President Joe Biden over former President Donald Trump.

Trump and his supporters have repeatedly, and without evidence, pointed to those states as hotbeds of voter fraud. As recently as last week, Trump maintained he won Wisconsin, which he lost by about 20,000 votes in 2020.

Nationwide, election workers have faced threats, intimidation and harassment that has led to high turnover of election officials and a few dozen federal charges. Wisconsin state lawmakers recently passed a bill that increases penalties for attacks on election workers.

Wolfe is among several swing state officials that have received particular nationwide attention, including comments from Trump on a radio program last week suggesting Wolfe would “try to steal” the 2024 election. In a written statement, Evers said rhetoric from Trump and others has contributed to a threatening environment for Wolfe and other election officials.

“Republicans’ rhetoric and actions have consequences, they have not only undermined basic tenets of our democracy and the integrity of our elections, but by participating in targeting, harassing, and threatening dedicated election officials for simply doing their jobs, including Administrator Wolfe, Republicans have enabled and emboldened others to do the same,” Evers said.

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