Newly Liberal Wisconsin Supreme Court To Reconsider Decision Banning Drop Boxes
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Wisconsin Supreme Court, which recently shifted from a conservative to a liberal majority, will reconsider a 2022 decision that banned the use of drop boxes throughout the state.
In an order issued last night over the dissent of two conservative justices, the majority agreed to hear oral argument on May 13, 2024 to decide whether to “overrule” the court’s 2022 holding in Teigen v. Wisconsin Elections Commission — a right-wing lawsuit that culminated in a statewide prohibition on the use of drop boxes.
In its Teigen decision, the court’s then-conservative majority held that secure ballot drop boxes contravene state law, concluding that absentee ballots may only be returned via mail to a municipal clerk or in person at a polling place.
The state Supreme Court flipped to a liberal majority in August 2023 following the election of Justice Janet Protasiewicz. Since Protasiewicz joined the bench, the court has already issued a pro-voting decision striking down the state’s heavily gerrymandered legislative districts, which have since been replaced by a fairer set of maps.
Yesterday’s order stems from an ongoing state-level lawsuit brought by pro-voting groups and a voter challenging a host of absentee voting rules in the Badger State. A trial court previously dismissed most of the plaintiffs’ claims in a January 2024 order, prompting the voting rights groups to appeal to the state Supreme Court.
In addition to the drop box ban, the litigation mounts challenges to Wisconsin’s requirement that absentee ballots be accompanied by a witness certificate, as well as the state’s 8 p.m. Election Day deadline by which voters must “cure” or fix errors on their absentee ballot envelopes. In yesterday’s order, the Wisconsin Supreme Court made clear that it is solely considering the drop box issue at the May 13 oral argument, meaning that all other issues in the case will remain on hold for the time being.
Meanwhile, separate lawsuits are proceeding through both federal and state courts that pose various challenges to the state’s absentee ballot witness requirement.
Despite the fact that drop boxes are a widely utilized and secure mechanism for absentee voting, conservative Justice Rebecca Grassl Bradley suggested in a dissent from yesterday’s order that the court’s decision to reconsider Teigen — and potentially restore the use of drop boxes — would “add fuel to the fires of suspicion” among citizens who are “increasingly question[ing] the legitimacy of elections with each election cycle.”
With the Wisconsin Supreme Court set to hold oral argument on May 13, a decision on whether drop boxes will be reinstated is all but guaranteed to come down prior to the 2024 presidential election.