Journal Times, Racine, Sept. 16
Evers should send National Guard to Kenosha
Kenoshans need to feel safe, like everyone else in Wisconsin.
And that means Kenosha needs support from the state to bolster local and regional law enforcement efforts.
And it means this week, after the 2,000 National Guard members have left and the curfew is gone.
Monday night’s sudden car caravan through Kenosha and protest at the courthouse again showed the city is in the middle of the unrest, and that means we need support.
It started with a pair of traffic stops off Interstate 94 that led to a woman’s arrest and the arrival of a large group of protesters who partially blocked Highway 158 during rush hour.
The woman, who was the driver of one of the vehicles with blacked-out licenses plates, was taken into custody for carrying a concealed weapon, a 9mm pistol, possession of marijuana and resisting arrest. Authorities said she possessed no driver’s license, no registration and no insurance. She was released on bond.
A protest downtown followed.
Gov. Tony Evers should send the National Guard if that’s what it takes until tensions subside.
There should be no misunderstanding. Local and regional law enforcement has been working around the clock and they need support.
And Evers, who has been staunchly defending his response the first time, can be proactive now, sending in what it takes.
An Evers spokeswoman said the governor was in touch with local officials Monday night and provided what was asked.
Locals should ask for more. Now. And the governor should act.
Kenosha is a target and it is easily accessible to the destructive element of the escalated protests and unrest.
It should be supported now and for the immediate future. It should be the top priority of the governor of Wisconsin.
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Wisconsin State Journal, Madison, Sept. 12
More Wisconsin residents should vote to end gerrymander
Voters in 11 more Wisconsin counties can, should and almost certainly will demand an end to gerrymandering this fall.
Every county across the state that has given its voters a chance to express themselves in advisory referendums has insisted that the politicians stop rigging legislative and congressional voting districts to their partisan advantage. That’s 17 counties so far, including liberal Dane but also conservative counties such as Lincoln and Winnebago. Voters in those counties have endorsed nonpartisan redistricting, similar to Iowa’s proven model, by two-thirds margins or more.
Now comes the Nov. 3 election, when voters in Adams, Bayfield, Brown, Crawford, Door, Dunn, Iowa, Jefferson, Kenosha, Rusk and Waushara counties will be asked to weigh in.
Every voter in these counties should vote “yes” when asked on their ballot: “Should the Wisconsin Legislature create a nonpartisan procedure for the preparation of legislative and congressional district plans and maps?”
If all 11 counties support the advisory referendum, that will make 28 counties whose voters have demanded a fair process, following this year’s census, when districts must be reshaped to reflect changes in population. Redistricting is required once every decade so every citizen’s vote has the same weight in electing state lawmakers and members of Congress.
Besides every county referendum passing so far, more than a dozen municipalities have adopted it. So have 55 of 72 county boards across the state. Those boards approved resolutions urging the Legislature to require an independent, nonpartisan process. That’s more than three-quarters of Wisconsin’s county boards.
Gov. Tony Evers has helped the cause by pressuring top lawmakers to accept a neutral, citizen-driven process.
Instead of allowing the politicians in power, currently Republicans, to draw oddly shaped voting districts for political advantage, a nonpartisan state agency or citizen panel should draw the maps with strict instructions to make them as compact as possible, while following municipal lines and not considering the effect on incumbents of either political party.
While many, though not all, Republicans lawmakers in Wisconsin have resisted a nonpartisan process, the Democrats failed to pass reform when they were in charge. So demanding a neutral process that respects voters of all stripes is not a partisan argument. It’s a foundation for good government that represents and is accountable to all.
Voters should get to pick their representatives, rather than the politicians picking which voters they want to represent.
Please vote “yes” on Nov. 3.
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Janesville Gazette, Janesville, Sept. 10
Get out to help in this important election
Your republic needs you.
Our system of government stands on a foundation of citizens electing representatives to make decisions on their behalf on the city council, the Legislature and in Congress.
But the COVID-19 pandemic poses a threat to elections like nothing else in our nation’s history.
In Janesville, the city needs at least 200 poll workers to help people cast their ballots and tally the results, said Dave Godek, city clerk-treasurer.
Godek isn’t sure where he’s going to find them.
“I think it’s going to be a challenge,” Godek said.
Most poll workers are elderly and especially vulnerable to COVID-19.
“They’re following advice to protect themselves,” Godek said.
How can the rest of us help? Here are some ideas.
Volunteer to be a poll worker.
The pay is $105 for the day. It’s a long day-typically 15 or 16 hours starting at 6 a.m.-but you can sign up for a half day.
Here’s a bonus: You get food. Before COVID-19, poll workers organized potluck meals for workers at their locations. For the August primary, the city bought food from local restaurants to feed poll workers “so we wouldn’t have to worry about sharing food.”
Training takes about an hour and can be done online or by watching a recording on JATV cable-access television.
Sign up your students.
“Usually, we pick up 40 or 50 kids,” Godek said.
He might need more this time around.
Rules set by the state dictate student poll workers be at least 16 years old, have grade-point averages of at least 3.0 and get permission from their principals and their parents.
“Kids love it,” Godek said. “They learn a lot about how elections work.”
But the pandemic might give some parents pause about sending their children to polling places.
As was done in the April and August elections, Godek said, poll workers will be provided KN95 masks. Masks will be available for voters. Clear plastic barriers will separate voters from workers. Hand-washing stations and hand sanitizer will be available, and the polling locations will be disinfected hourly.
Also, the number of people voting in person is expected to be down. Godek said many poll workers will be helping process an expected 25,000 absentee ballots.
Send money.
When we suggested people might be willing to donate toward meals for poll workers, Godek said that hadn’t occurred to him.
“If people wanted to send a donation so that we could purchase lunch or dinner for the poll workers, I certainly wouldn’t be opposed to that,” Godek said.
Money can be sent to the clerk/treasurer’s office with a note indicating it is for feeding poll workers.
Mostly, Godek needs people.
“I can’t hold an election with just my staff. There’s eight of us. We can’t do it. We rely on citizens and residents to allow everybody to exercise their freedom to vote. It’s something we take seriously, and we certainly are always looking for help,” he said.
And staffing the polls with a spectrum of volunteers from across the community not only makes the elections work, it makes the elections secure.
“It’s really, really hard to commit election fraud in this state and impact the outcome. We’re so decentralized. You would need so many people involved in it to impact how something happens,” Godek said.
“It’s one more thing that really does help … and gives people comfort that the process that we follow is fair and is going to be done the right way.”
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