Democrats in Wisconsin yesterday turned in more than a million signatures to force a recall election of Gov. Scott Walker – double the amount required and nearly as many votes as the governor received when elected to a four-year term in 2010.
The following statements from Wisconsin resident Maureen Martin, senior fellow for legal affairs at The Heartland Institute – a free-market think tank – may be used for attribution. For more comments, refer to the contact information below.
To book Ms. Martin on your program, please contact Tammy Nash at [email protected] and 312/377-4000. After regular business hours, contact Jim Lakely at [email protected] and 312/731-9364.
“It might be even more fun for Wisconsin Republicans on the Internet than Angry Birds when Wisconsin election officials post the Walker recall petitions, filed Tuesday afternoon, on line later this week.
“Democrats filed petitions Tuesday containing about one million signatures – twice the number needed to recall Walker. The state’s so-called election watchdog, the Government Accountability Board (GAB), said Tuesday the petitions will be scanned and posted for public viewing in a few days.
“Democrats had urged Wisconsinites to sign more than once; even more than twice. The GAB says it will try detecting duplicate signatures, but it did so only after a court order to that effect. So Walker recall opponents will be double-checking.
“A further problem arises because the recall petitions can be signed by any Wisconsin resident over the age of 18 who supplies a Wisconsin address. A valid one? An actual residence, not a hotel? A residence next door, though there are none?
“Walker’s supporters – and more than 1.2 million of them voted for him in November 2010 – will be looking at the petitions very closely trying to detect irregularities, including but not limited to duplicates. It’s up to them to guard the integrity of the Wisconsin election process, since the GAB won’t be doing so.”
Maureen Martin
Senior Fellow for Legal Affairs
The Heartland Institute
[email protected]
920/ 295-6032
The Heartland Institute is a 28-year-old national nonprofit organization with offices in Chicago, Illinois; Washington, DC; Austin, Texas; Tallahassee, Florida; and Columbus, Ohio. Its mission is to discover, develop, and promote free-market solutions to social and economic problems. For more information, visit our Web site or call 312/377-4000.
Maureen Martin, a former legal fellow at The Heartland Institute, passed away on February 5, 2013.
