Republicans calling for dissolving the nonpartisan board that oversees elections and government ethics laws in Wisconsin say it is a unique experiment that failed.
Advertisement
Wisconsin’s eight-year-old elections and ethics agency would be replaced, under a bill that’s up for a public hearing at the State Capitol this morning.
The GAB says it has performed honorably, and its supporters call it a national model for running non-partisan elections and ethics investigations.
Republican sponsors ticked off a list of problems with the current oversight agency, and said the partisan makeup they envision would be a better and more honest approach. The probe, which was blocked by the state Supreme Court earlier this summer, was investigating what prosecutors believes was illegal coordination between Governor Scott Walker’s campaign and conservative outside groups.
Walker voiced support Tuesday for moving back to a partisan system, saying he was particularly pleased that local election clerks would fill two of the six board seats.
Rep. Fred Kessler (D-Milwaukee) accused backers of the bill of carrying out a political vendetta against the GAB because of its involvement in a John Doe investigation.
Advertisement
Majority Republicans in the Legislature are pushing for the changes.
