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Milwaukee City Officials Decry Law Restricting Early Voting

Gov. Walker Signed Law Thursday, Vetoing Particular Aspects

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Gov. Scott Walker tours a Wisconsin factory
File: Gov. Scott Walker  Photo: Shawn Johnson / WPR

Some elected officials in Milwaukee allege Gov. Scott Walker is trying to “fix” the results of the fall election by eliminating early voting hours on weekends.

Walker signed a bill yesterday that eliminates early voting on Saturday and Sunday. He did veto some of the bill’s language limiting early voting to 45 hours a week in the two weeks before an election, and instead expanded it to 55 hours a week for those two weeks.

The ban on weekend voting still troubles many in Madison and Milwaukee, including Milwaukee Alderman Ashanti Hamilton: “The fix is in. That is the intended impact of this legislation.”

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Milwaukee Alderwoman Milele Coggs also uses the word “fix” to describe the law: “Anyone who actually reads it, can see that the fix is in,” she said. “That the areas most impacted are areas where the majority of people do not feel the same as those in control in the Legislature and the governor’s house.”

Republicans contend the bill is just an attempt to equalize voting opportunity across the state. Critics say it’s likely the dispute will wind up in court.